Smile, Kid
by sugarrush-assbutt
Summary: Soul, Maka and the gang recieve a mission to complete over vacation: go to a cursed art gallery and rescue two individuals. With this in mind, they set off to the gallery, but what they don't know is that there's someone who wants to keep them there forever. DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN SOUL EATER OR IB OR ANY OF ITS CHARACTERS
1. Chapter 1

Garry felt weak. His blue rose was clutched in his fist, the thorns digging into his skin. There were only three petals on the flower now- the other two lay on the floor next to him. His eyes searched frantically around the room. Where was Mary? Where was Ib? Garry remembered being in the gallery with them….eyeballs on the floor….hands popping out of the walls….women jumping out of paintings, scuttling after them….mannequin heads appearing out of nowhere….

_No, no, don't think about it! _Garry thought. He was out of the gallery. He had to be….. Looking around, he tensed up. A doll was hanging upside down by a rope, stopping a few centimeters above his head. Trembling, he tightened his grip on the flower- his lifeline. If all the petals fell away, he knew he would be a goner. The doll's eyes bulged from its head, its yarn hair stringy and frayed. The cloth that served as a dress folded over exposing the little stumps for legs. His eyes widened as he noticed, out of the corner of his eye, a hand glide swiftly from the wall and creep along the floor to where he lay. Garry tried moving as fast as he could, but ended up staying rooted to the spot out of fear.

"AAAGGGHHHH!" Garry screamed until the hand clamped itself over his mouth, silencing him. Suddenly, he heard footsteps and saw a shadow around the corner splayed on the wall.

"Garry?!" came Ib's voice. He then heard two pairs of feet running, and a pair of red loafers as well as brown loafers came into his line of vision. Garry squirmed, trying to get the hand off him, but it was no use, as the hand tightened its hold on him.

"Mary! Help me get this thing off him!" Ib cried as Mary fell to her knees and clawed at the hand. Her blond hair tumbled over her shoulders as she bent over him, her blue eyes filled with tears. But her eyes quickly had a look of glee, a sinister smile spread across her face- as if she was enjoying the sight of Garry in pain. He squirmed some more, trying to get away from Mary, but he was scared of upsetting the doll that hung right above him. Mary looked back at Ib, and her face went back to being scared and tearful.

"Ib! It won't budge!" Mary cried in defeat. Ib fell next to her and scratched at the hand as well, but her small fingers couldn't get a good hold. She then started patting at Mary's green dress.

"Ib, what the-?!" Mary shouted, "GGGAAAHHH!" She dove for the floor as the painting on the wall spit at her, its red tongue hanging in out of its mouth. Ib then drew it from Mary's pocket- the knife. With swift determination, she began sawing at the hand. The black skin writhed and twitched as she cut into it. She managed to cut off the arm, but the hand stayed where it was. Ib threw the knife down in frustration, the blade clattering as it hit the floor. Ib had a red rose in her hand, Mary had yellow. Both were in full bloom, completely healthy.

"Crap!" she muttered as the painting went to spit at Mary again. They dodged it by rolling like logs across the floor. Garry shook his head as they rolled toward the wall, where another hand lay in waiting. _No! No! Don't go towards the wall! _his mind screamed at them- if only they could hear his thoughts! Thankfully, they stopped just short of the hand, just out of it's reach. The lamps on the walls flickered, the already dim light growing dimmer. Garry stared up at the hanging doll. It's red eyes glowed brightly in the almost darkness. Garry shivered as the hand's fingers wiggled slightly.

Were they ever going to get out of here?

Maka moved her bishop diagonally across the chessboard, knocking out one of Shadow's tower shaped pieces. She placed it triumphantly on the small black square. Shadow banged his fist on the table, making the pieces jump slightly.

"Damn! You're gonna beat me again!" Shadow said. Maka smirked.

"I know," she said, flipping one of her brown pigtails over her shoulder. There was a sudden knock on the door, and Tsubaki walked in, Black Star with her as well. She gave a meek wave.

"Hello," she said, "do you mind if we join you?" Black Star rolled his eyes.

"Tsubaki! You're supposed to say 'Allow us to grace you with our presence' not 'Do yo mind if we join you! Get it right next time!" he exclaimed. Tsubaki nodded, "Right, right, of course." Maka pointed to the couch, "Have a seat and join us." Tsubaki took a spot next to Maka while Black Star plopped himself on the floor next to Soul.

"Is Kid here yet?" Black Star asked. Soul shook his head as Maka took out his king, ending the game.

"No, he said he and Liz and Patty might be late- Lord Death called them down to his office earlier," Soul explained. Lord Death was Kid's father, a very lovable man as well, he wore a mask and pair of hands that looked as if they came straight out of a cartoon.

"Oh," said Black Star, "but why? It's vacation. He shouldn't have to go on e a mission!" Soul shrugged.

"I guess it's because he's the Headmaster's son that he has to do more work?" he asked. Maka shook her head.

"No. I think it would be the other way around," she said.

"Yes, it would make no sense if he got more work just because he was his son," Tsubaki agreed, "in reality, he should be getting less work because he is the Headmaster's son." Black Star scratched his head.

"Whatever," Black Star said, "I'm hungry- who wants pizza?" Everyone agreed to this and Maka took a notepad from her pocket along with a pen. Flipping the book open, she clicked the pen and said, "What toppings?" Soon they had a list and were on the phone, Black Star talking loudly at the speaker. As soon as they hung up, Kid walked in with Liz and Patty, the door creaking on its hinges.

"Hey guys, what's up?" he asked as he walked in and plopped himself on the couch next to Soul. He ran a hand through his black hair, which had three white strips on the left side of his head. He was carrying a package under his arm. Liz and Patty waved at Tsubaki, then stood by the couch, silent. There were looks of nervousness on their faces.

"Just ordered a pizza," Maka said, then gestured at the package, "what's that for?" Kid put the package on the table, untying the red string on it. He ripped at the envelope, taking out a bunch of papers. He placed them on the table.

"This," he said, "is our group mission." Maka picked up a sheet of paper. It had a photo of a little girl clipped to it. In the picture, the little girl had her dark brown hair long down her back, thick bangs in front of her forehead. The irises of her eyes were red, and she wore what looked like a school uniform, a red ribbon at her neck. Putting it down, she picked up another photo. A young man smiled back at her, his purple hair swept over one eye, looking messy and were four darker purple strands that were crimped at the top of his head. His purple eyes looked kind and sweet. He wore a green tank top and a navy-blue coat that had a long collar cut to look like fringe or feathers.

"What do you mean by group?" asked Black Star eyed the papers with the little girl's photo.

"Father said you and Tsubaki still haven't collected even one soul," Kid explained.

"Oh, yeah," he said. Soul snickered- he and Maka had collected at least 97 souls by now. The trouble with Black Star was that he let his ego get in the way of his work- which often cost him and Tsubaki major points on exams and missions.

"So my father decided to let all of us do this mission together," Kid continued, "the mission-"

"What's the mission anyway?" Soul interrupted.

"I'm getting to that!" Kid snapped," now, as I was saying, the mission involves these two people." Maka picked up the little girl's papers again and started reading.

"It says here this little girl's name is Ib," she read aloud. She then picked up the boy's photo. There were no papers accompanying it, but on the photo was a name.

"Garry," Tsubaki read over her shoulder, "Hmm. Interesting way to spell it, no?" Kid gestured towards Ib's file.

"Ib was visiting an art gallery with her parents the day she went missing- her parents as well." He picked up Garry's photo and passed it around, "Garry had been missing for about three months around the time Ib disappeared."

"What's the connection between the two people?" Soul asked, "it sounds like two different missing persons cases."

"They were visiting the same art gallery," Kid said.

"Do they know these people's ages? Personal info?" Soul asked, "we're gonna need more to work with, you know?"

"The file says Ib is a nine year old girl. She's about four feet five inches tall, attending Seika Academy in Tokyo, Japan," Kid explained. Soul pointed at Garry's photo, "What about him?"

"Father said he must be at least nineteen or twenty years old, by the looks of him," Kid said, "but other then his name, time of disappearance and a possible age, he has no known background information."

"That's weird though," Maka said, "wouldn't he have had any close friends?"

"Like I said, no one knows," Kid rubbed his head, "the gallery they were at was for some European artist named Giovanni. Here's a list of the rules needing to be followed when visiting." He reached into another envelope and pulled out single sheet of paper with crisp black letters. Everyone leaned in to scan the paper:

**Rules of the Gallery:**

**1. Please do not touch the art ever**

**2. No food or drink in the gallery ever**

**3. Please refrain from taking photos of the art ever**

**4. No lighters, matches, or light source of any kind is allowed in the gallery ever**

**5. No leaving ever**

Maka felt sweat form on her face. The rules all had the word 'ever' at the end- and what was with the last two? She figured number four would be for safety purposes, but number five? No leaving ever? _Does that mean whoever goes in never comes out?_ she thought as Kid pulled out another sheet of paper.

"They found a shred of Garry's coat at the door of the gallery. In the pocket was this letter," Kid said.

**The use of a lighter, match, or any other light source is strictly prohibited in the gallery. If we find out that there was use of a lighter, match, et cetera, the staff will be immediately notified of this use and will confiscate the item immediately. Please refrain from using a lighter, matches, et cetera. Thank you and enjoy your stay.**

"So, did he have a lighter with him?" Soul asked. Kid nodded. He then handed him a few other photos of Gary they found- Ib was in these as well. The first was written all over with red ink the words "NO FIRE" in big capital letters. The second had Garry's head missing, colored over with thick black marker. A third had Garry and Ib's eyes colored out with the same black marker, "Eye?" written all over it. A fourth had the question "PLAY?" in big red letters. Kid then said, "They were in a hallway of the gallery when these were taken by someone who we think trapped them there. They're standing in front of a mirror, so if you look closely, you can see a bit of a young girl's silhouette in the shadows there." He pointed to where the form of a little girl could be barely seen. From the look of the shadow, she looked about the same age as Ib.

"But they didn't confiscate it. It's believed he still has it on him, considering it was not in the pocket along with the letter and these photos."

"Are they still stuck in the gallery then?" Black Star asked.

"No duh," Kid teased, "why else would I be showing this stuff to you?"

"So, where are we going for this mission? Japan?" Maka asked.

"Yup," Kid said, "so let's go." He gathered up all the files and photos, putting them carefully back in the envelope and retying the thin red ribbon. He then took a bought of roses from his pocket and gave everyone one, "Father said we'll need these with us at all times once we're in the gallery, so make sure you don't lose them." Everyone tucked their flower somewhere safe and followed Kid out the door.

"Aw, man! Now we gotta cancel the pizza order!" Black Star whined. His stomach grumbled loudly.

"We'll get another one when we get there!" Kid chastised him, "now come on! Let's go!"

Patty punched the air, "Woo-hoo! Road trip!"

Lord Death watched all this play out before him through his full length mirror. Next to him was Spirit and Dr. Stein. Stein was rifling through copies of the evidence and files they made for themselves, staring intently at the photo of Garry. Spirit peered at the picture over his shoulder.

"And you think this kid is nineteen? Possibly twenty?" he asked him. Stein shrugged.

"That's what it looks like," Stein answered, "the little girl is nine years old. If they were able to find each other, he could protect her from the curses of the gallery. But what I don't get is why there was the silhouette of another girl in the other photos." Spirit then started panicking.

"Lord Death! You're sending my Maka to a cursed art gallery?! Why?!' he whined.

"Oh, get a hold of yourself," Lord Death scolded him, "Maka and the others should be able to handle the situation just fine. After all, they helped save the school last year, no?"

"Oh, right," Spirit murmured, then with a bout of energy yelled at the mirror, "YOU GO MAKA! DADDY'S PROUD OF YOU!" Lord Death rolled his eyes. Stein payed no attention, still staring at the photo of Garry.

"Honestly, I don't know what to do with you sometimes," the Headmaster commented, setting his gaze back to the mirror. He was still nervous thought. He had told Kid everything there was to know about the gallery, except for the one small fact when he gave him the flowers: once they were in the gallery, the roses would be their only life source


	2. Chapter 2

Kid, Maka, Soul, and the others were now walking in to the art gallery in Tokyo Japan.

"Do you think there's food?" Patty asked her sister Liz.

"I don't think so," Liz answered, arms crossed over her chest. She was already shaking- if the place was cursed, what would they see inside? She shook her head, driving the thoughts away. Maka was flipping through a pamphlet as she walked along with the group, gazing curiously at every painting she could.

"Wow, this artwork is amazing!" she exclaimed, her green eyes twinkling, "I mean, look at this portrait!" She pointed to a painting of a young woman, titled "The Lady In Red." She had long brown hair and wore a red dress. Soul trembled when he looked at it. _She looks a bit creepy_, he thought.

"But her eyes- don't they look a bit sinister to you?" Tsubaki asked as she joined them. Maka looked more closely- they did in fact, have somewhat of an evil glow, painted a bright red. Maka then looked away, a bit scared. She looked around some more- there were mannequins in red, yellow, and blue dresses- but they had no heads. There was a painting of fruit in a bowl, and a sculpture in the middle of the room, titled "Abyss OF Darkness." It depicted a lake that was so dark blue it was nearly brown, with a boat sinking into it. There were more paintings like the woman in red, only they wore either blue or green dresses as well as red. Liz then pointed to one of the portraits. The canvas was ripped, leaving the white wall exposed.

"Why is this one damaged?" she asked. Black Star shrugged.

"Maybe there's an art thief?" he asked, and received a bop on the head from Liz.

"Idiot! If there was an art thief, the actual painting wouldn't be for to shreds!" she said. Kid looked at the painting more closely. Reaching out, he took a piece of canvas in his fingers, folding it into it's proper place.

"This painting looks as if it was sliced through," he said, "but not to steal it. It was as if…."

"As if someone was escaping?" Soul suggested as he joined Kid in staring at the ripped painting.

"Yeah, but it doesn't make any sense," Kid said, "why should a person in a painting want to escape? Why should a painting be able to move in the first place?" He looked at a pice of ripe canvas. It hd green paint on it. He looked next at the plague underneath that bore the title. _The_ _Lady In Green, _he thought, then said, "This was a painting of a lady in green," he said to the others.

"Could that be who trapped them here? The other girl we saw in the photos?" Liz asked, a hint of fear in her voice. She was shaking worse then before.

"Possibly," Kid said, "what we have on our hands, is a cursed gallery after all." First an art thief and now a woman in a painting who trapped people in galleries? _I wanna go home_, she thought as she reluctantly followed the group to look for more clues on the art.

Ib and Mary were finally able to get the hand off him. Carefully, they helped him slide away from the doll, which was making Garry a bit paranoid. His eye that was not covered by his hair widened, the pupil dilated.

"Ib, Mary," he said as he looked at it, "It's staring at us, Wh-why is it staring at us?" Mary rolled her eyes as Ib consoled him. _Did I really leave my frame for this?_ she thought, _this guy is a total wimp!_

"It's okay, Garry, it's just a doll," she said, trying to sound brave, when in truth, she was just as scared as he was, but she guessed he had more reason to be frightened. _He told me had been here for at least three months, _she thought- who knows what Garry might have seen in that time, alone with all this art out to get him, make him one of them? She felt a tingle in her skin as she remembered seeing the painting of her parents in one of the rooms. _I'll get you out, don't worry,_ she thought as they turned a corner. May let out a small yelp, pointing a shaking finger.

"Guys! Wha-wha- what's this?!" she cried. On the wall were three portraits of the same head- a mannequin head, Ib one on the left was looking left, the one on the right looking right, and the one in the middle staring at the opposite wall. Lined along the wall on the floor were white mannequin heads, some of them looked as if they were crying, red lines running down their faces.

"Ib! They're creepy! Really creepy! What are we gonna do?!" Mary asked tugging at the blue ribbon around her neck. Ib shrugged, lifting Mary's knife. She was thankful she remembered to pick it up off he floor after what happened in the other hallway.

"I don't know…. how about we destroy them?" she tried sounding brave, but she knew Mary and Garry heard the fear in her voice. Ib handed the knife to Mary, who took it, not looking at her. Walking over to the mannequin heads, she knelt down in front of one, raising her knife. With a swift motion, she bought the knife down on the head. There was a sickening crack, and it split neatly into two perfect halves, blood gushing from the inside. The hem of Mary's green dress was stained with blood, her knife dripping with the substance. Garry jumped, giving out a cry of fear.

"Oh my god!" he shouted, "was this artist some psychotic murderer?! What the fuck?!" He felt sweat on his forehead. Mary rolled her eyes at him, somewhat bored- it was as if she wanted this to be over and done already. She cleaned her knife on her dress as she watched Ib console Garry once more, telling him everything was going to be alright. She looked at the broken and bloody mannequin head, then back at Garry, tightening her grip on the knife handle. _If only I could do that to your head_, she thought, _I could have Ib here with me all the time…. _She eyed his flower. The blue rose only had three petals left. Ib's rose as well as her own were still full of petals and completely healthy. _If I'm going to do this_, Mary thought, _I'm going to need to get ahold of their roses_. She clutched her own rose tightly in her hand, the yellow flower bobbing up and down


	3. Chapter 3

Mary eyed Garry as she walked down another dark hallway with Ib and him. The knife tucked in her pocket, she was tempted to take it out and stab him in the back right there. Of course, she couldn't do it. Not yet- Ib was with them. If she wanted Ib to stay with her, she would have to separate her from the trio. Ib was holding Garry's hand tightly, nearly squeezing it. Mary viewed this as disgusting. I_ want Ib to hold my hand that way_, she thought as she tightened her grip on the knife handle. Shadows flew past on the walls. Ib then pointed ahead of them.

"Look! What is it?" she asked as she ran up to it, then stopped, taking a step back.

"What? What?" Garry asked as he and Mary joined her. A grimace crossed is face as he looked at the floor. Bobbing in the floor like apples in a bucket of water, eyeballs floated lazily, lining a small hallway in a zigzag pattern. The irises were all different colors and flitted their gazes everywhere as Ib hesitantly took a step forward. Garry grabbed her arm, holding her back.

"What?" Ib asked, "what's wrong?" His face had a look of fear, his forehead sweating. He wiped his brow with his sleeve. Gulping, he let go of her arm, not taking his eyes off the eyeballs.

"Nothing…." he said shaking his head, "nothing, never mind. Let's just go." Mary rolled her eyes.

"No, something is up," Ib said, "are you okay?" Garry gulped, nodding his head.

"Y-y-yeah," he stuttered. Mary then grabbed Garry's hand as she walked past. Dragging him, she darted through the maze of eyeballs, Garry's face red with panic as he shuffled his feet in order to keep up. Ib followed them hastily, jumping around them. One of the eyeballs was red, as if something was bothering it. Once they got to the other side, Mary flung Garry to the ground, glaring at him.

"There," she spat at him, "you're safe now. Let's go." She staled off down the hallway as Ib finally joined them, running to catch up with Mary. Garry was a bit slow to follow. He didn't really like Mary very much, although she was trying to get out of the gallery as well.

"W-w-wait for me!" he shouted after them, scrambling into a run as Mary and Ib turned a corner. Something on the wall caught his eye as he ran, and he stopped, staring at it. A pairing of a black canvas with a blue face stared back at him. The eyes were facing different directions, and the teeth were all jagged.

"Heh heh heh…." the painting laughed, a sinister boom filling the air, "the flower…. what a pretty thing…." _What is it talking about? _Garry thought, then it struck him: his rose. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out the blue rose, which still had only three petals on it. He held it in front of the painting.

"This?" he asked. It looked as if the painting was smiling, the yes rolling around.

"He heh heh… yes….." it said, "can I eat it?" Garry blinked. Did it just say it wanted to eat his flower? He tightened his grip, the thrones plunging into the palm of his hand. Shoving it in his pocket, he ran after Ib and Mary, the painting laughing as he ran away.

"Ib! Mary!" Garry called, "Where did you go?!" His voice echoed in the hallway as he ran frantically, not wanting to be alone in the gallery for a second time.

"Ib! Mary! Where did you go?!" yelled a voice. Soul and Liz froze, trembling. The entire group was a bit nervous- they had been hearing voices everywhere ever since they ventured into the gallery. Black Star was hugging Tsubaki tightly, nearly crying as Tsubaki petted his spiky blue hair.

"There, there," she consoled him, "I'm right here, don't worry."

"What was that?" Maka asked as she ten heard a sinister laugh fill the air.

"Correction," Kid said, "Who was that? That would be Garry. We must catch up to him. And quickly- we don't want her to find us first." By 'her' he mean the woman in the painting that was ripped. If she was walking around freely, who knows what she would do if she found the two people first?

"How did you knw it was Garry?" Maka asked, "that's a bit of a hunch."

"Well, if you think about it," Kid started explaining, he and Ib are the- GAAAHH!" Kid dove for the floor as something swung through the air. Hand dover his head, he shook with fright.

"It's just a doll!" Patty exclaimed as she helped Kid up. He sighed in relief and dusted himself off. A rope tied around its neck, a doll with blue yarn hair wearing a green piece of cloth for a dress dangled from the ceiling. Its red eyes bulged from its head. Liz hid behind Patty, who gazed at it with curiosity.

"I-I knew that," Kid stuttered, inspecting the doll. The cloth was dirty, the yarn hair short. The rope around its neck was frayed. The doll swung lazily side to side. He wiped his forehead. The doll was a bit creepy to him, the eyes slightly glowing. And it wasn't symmetrical- at all. One was bigger then the other. He turned away, burying his face in his hands, "I can't look at it!" He pointed at the doll, his arm flailing everywhere.

"Your OCD is such a problem," Maka muttered as she looked at the doll closely. Black Star whimpered as Tsubaki continued calming him down. A pice of paper was taped to the back of the doll's dress. She took it, squinting her eyes in the dim light. She waved them over and they reluctantly crowded around her, trying to get a good look.

"A letter?" Black Star sniffed.

"No, numbers," Soul pointed, "Six… nine….. and eighteen."

"What are they for?" Black Star asked, "the door we saw back in the other hallway?" Maka shrugged.

"Don't know. I think so, It was asking for the numbers, right? But we didn't know what they were," she said, "I think these are it. How about we go back?" Kid jumped up, shaken this head.

"No! Absolutely not!" he said, "I am not going back there!" The hallway with the door was lined with mannequin heads, the eyes black and lifeless. The paintings on the wall stared at you a s you walked past them too, which really creeped Kid out. And at the end of the hallway, one of the heads was cracked, blood staining the floor in a big puddle.

"But we have to go back!" Maka said, "we have to complete the mission!" Maka didn't mention that the broken mannequin head creeped her out too- were Ib and Garry in that hallway already? Liz gulped.

"What about Mary?" she asked.

"Who's Mary?" Maka turned to face Liz, "the mission only mentioned two people. Not three." Liz jerked her head to where they heard Garry's voice.

"You know, when he was yelling for Ib?" there was a nervous titter in Liz's voice. Lix was a major scaredy-cat, and Maka could tell this was really freaking her out. _He did yell out another person's name_, Maka thought, _maybe…._

"Is Mary the woman in the painting?" Maka asked herself.

"What was that?" Liz asked, "Did you just say this Mary might be the woman int eh painting that was ripped!?" Maka nodded.

"Don't you remember when we were walking in the maze of those velvet ropes, frantically pushing the buttons not eh wall for a way out?" Maka asked. Everyone nodded. Maka continued, "Well, when the woman jumped out at us, her frame was still attached to her. That means everything here can come to life at any moment and attack us. If the woman in the ripped painting is Mary, and if she was with the two of them, then she may have tried to kill them already." Kid fiddled with the collar of his shirt.

"Good detective work, Maka," he said, "but how did Mary keep her frame on the wall if she is one of the women in the paintings?"

"She used a knife," Maka stated, "each time we saw a woman in a frame, she had a knife clutch dn her fist as she crawled after us."

"True," Kid said, "so let's go!" He ran toward the hallway with the mannequin heads, and everyone followed, watching closely at the walls in cad any hands decided to pop out and grab them. Soul eyed the painting of the head on the wall. The black eyes followed them as they ran safely through the hallway and to the door, which was slightly ajar.

"Someone was already here," Soul gulped, pointed to the door. A shadow of darkness was cast on the floor. Maka ripped up the paper with the numbers.

"Looks like we won't be needing these then- Garry Ib and Mary must have been here already," Maka put her hand on the doorknob and pulled open the door. It was completely dark, empty.

"I'll give you a dollar if you go first," Soul leaned over and said to Black Star. Black Star jumped.

"No way, man! You go!" he cried. Maka rolled her eyes and pushed open the door, ready to go in.

"Girls," she muttered. Just as she was about to step inside, Patty tapped her on the shoulder.

"Look! Look!" she laughed, a big smile on her face. She was pointing behind them, the mannequin heads lined up on the walls. Instead of facing the opposite wall though, all the heads were turned towards them, red lines drawn on their faces to represent tears. Maka heard footsteps.

"What is it, Patty?" Maka squinted as she stared down the hallway. The footsteps grew louder.

"Someone is coming!" she giggled. Indeed, someone was. Shadows splayed on the floor as the person- or two people- got closer to them. She saw the silhouettes of two girls.

"Mary! Mary!" cried a voice- Was that Ib?- "Where's Garry?" Everyone turned toward the sound, watching as a little girl in a green dress and brown loafers ran towards them, looking over her shoulder. Her blond hair flew behind her as she ran, the hem of her dress stained with blood.

"I-I don't know, Ib!" cried Mary, "I saw him turn a corner, maybe he's in that room we were in earlier!" A little girl wearing a red and white schoolgirl's uniform was behind Mary, long brown hair and bangs in her face.

"Is that…." Soul was squinting, "Is that Ib?"

"I think so," Maka answered, "and with her is Mary." Mary began to ten her head, and everyone braced themselves for the impact- the two girls were much closer now. Mary's blue eye widened as she saw Maka, Soul and the others and she stopped abruptly, gasping. _What the hell?_ Mary Thought as Ib crashed into her, knocking both of them to the ground at the group's feet. Ib looked up at Maka, who stared back intensely with green eyes.

"Mary, who are they?" Ib asked, "are they part of the gallery?" The little girl sounded scared and confused. _Well, she is only nine years old_, Maka thought as she knelt down.

"Uh, no," Maka said, "we were just visiting the gallery, and we got lost. Are you two visiting the gallery too?" Mary and Ib exchanged glances before answering, "Yes." Maka smiled as they stood up, sticking out her hand. Ib took it and shook it gently. Mary took her hand and squeezed it. Maka jumped- Mary looked as if she wanted to rip Maka's arm off.

"Well, I'm Maka, and this is Soul, Kid, Liz and Patty, Tsubaki, and finally Black Star." She gestured to everyone as she went through their names.

"I'm Ib, and this is Mary," Ib introduced. Mary crossed her arms, looking a bit annoyed. Mary then noticed that each of them were carrying flowers too. _Now I have to try to get rid of these losers too?_ she thought, _what a pain. _Ib continued as she twirled her red rose in her fingers, "We were with someone named Garry too, but we got separated after he was attacked by the hands, and the dolls-" she sounded as if she might cry right there- "and I don't think seeing the mannequin head with blood helped. Or being dragged through the eyeballs on the floor for that matter." Ib looked at Mary when she said this.

"What?' Mary asked, "if you ask me, he deserved to be dragged through the eyeballs, like, come on! He was being such a baby!" She tossed her blond hair over her shoulder. Ib's eyes widened. Maka raised her eyebrows.

"Why would you say that if he was trying to help you out?" Soul asked. Mary shot him a look.

"How old are you anyway?" she asked haughtily, crossing her arms. A knife was clutched in her fist.

"What do you mean?!" Soul asked with astonishment, "I'm fifteen! What does that have to do with anything?!" Mary shrug, staring at her reflection in the blade of her knife.

"You can't be fifteen- you have white hair," Mary said, pointing at him with her knife. Soul jumped as she did this, hoping that she wouldn't stab him.

"Are you saying I'm old?!" Soul exclaimed. Mary ignored him, looking at her knife instead. Black Star and Patty then laughed loudly, receiving a punch from Soul.

"Um, Mary, right?" Tsubaki stepped forward, "what does Garry look like?" Mary rolled her eyes.

"You look pathetic," Mary commented as she looked Tsubaki up and down, "I mean, who only wears one sock?" Tsubaki's face went red as she played with the end of her ponytail.

"Uh…..um…" she looked for something else to say. Kid pointed at the hem of Mary's dress.

"What a nice dress," he complimented her. Mary raised an eyebrow.

"Are you gay?" she asked. Kid went red as Tsubaki had, but continued, "My sexual preference is none of your concern. Now what happened to your dress?" Mary looked down at her dress. specifically at the blood stains. Everyone glanced sideways at the destroyed mannequin head.

"She destroyed one of the mannequin heads," Ib chimed in, "with her knife. Garry was freaking out after the situation with the hand and the hanging doll, so Mary decided to break one of the heads and blood started to come out of it." Everyone gave each other confused glances at this remark. _So they were already here_, Maka thought, _and why does Mary seem so…. uptight? _

"Do you know where Garry might have gone?" Kid asked Ib. The little girl shrugged.

"I-I-I don't know!" Ib plopped herself on the floor and began sobbing. Tsubaki knelt down and rubbed her back, consoling her as she had Black Star earlier. Maka eyed Mary, who glared back. Her blue eyes looked cold and mean.

Garry walked briskly through a hallway, eyeing the floor and ceiling carefully in case anything popped out at him. His entire body shook and trembled. He called out for Ib and Mary again, to see if they would answer, to see if they were still alive, even.

"Ib….?" he called, "….. Mary?" He gulped. He heard his voice echo off the walls. Running his fingers along the wall, he walked faster. The wall was cold against his skin as he then broke into a run, panic setting in. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a black blur at the base of the wall and jumped forward, missing a set of fingers by a few inches. Sighing with relief, he ran ahead, trig to focus only on the…. was that a door? Yes! It is! Garry thought excitedly- and above the door was a glowing red sign that said the one thing he'd been wanting to do for the past three months.

**EXIT**

Not even bothering to watch if any hands reached for him or if dolls swung at him from above, he ran towards the door, hands out in front of him. Because he wasn't looked at where he was going, a painting on the wall spit at him, the saliva splashing him in the face. Garry wiped it away hastily, holding his blue rose in his hand, nearly dead and wilted. He didn't care. He was finally going to be free, free from the gallery, free from the hands that shot out of walls. He was going to be free of dolls swinging by ropes. He was going to be free of paintings that spit and eyeballs in the floor. He was going to be free of women in frames that scrambled after him with knives. Finally, he would be able to put behind him all the strange messages, the mannequin heads popping up out of nowhere. He would finally be able to live a normal life again…. But what about Ib? The thought stopped him dead in his tracks. What about her? _She's only nine years old_, Garry thought, _she might not be able to fend for herself if she yes attacked by surprise. And she was with Mary_. And Mary had a knife…. Spinning on his heels, he ran back. Suddenly, he slipped, crashing to the ground. Almost immediately, a hand shot from the wall and grabbed his arm. Three more grabbed his limbs until he lay on the floor stretched out. The fingers were digging into his skin. Gotta keep my rose, he thought as he made sure to keep a hold of it. His chin hit the floor with a loud crack. Garry watch as blood dripped from his chin to form a puddle. As best as he could, he peered over his shoulder and screamed, his eyes widening.

The door was ajar, and a doll was sticking its head out- this one was not like the small ones hanging from ropes, but looked to be about his size. The red eyes stared blankly at him. The stitches made to look like a smile ripped, the sound of fabric tearing echoing in the silence. Soon, there were two jagged lines to represent an open mouth. The doll was bobbing up and down, looking as if it was laughing. The doll then opened the door all the way and advanced toward him. Like a newborn, the doll was unsteady on its stubby legs and looked as if it were about to fall over at any second. Taking small steps, it teetered over to where Garry lay, then reached down, but with such momentum, the doll fell over on top of Garry instead. He struggled to break free, but the hands only gripped him tighter, and the doll started to laugh maniacally, reaching its stubby arms around his neck.

"IB! MARY! HELP ME! HEL-" he started screaming, but the doll shoved one of its hands in his mouth, muffling his cries. He felt tears form and start to fall down his face- _Will Ib find me?_ he thought. One of the hands on him squeezed his wrist so severely he thought he heard a crack, and he emitted a muffled cry of pain. His blue rose fell from his grasp. The hands let go of his wrists and he fell to the ground, his face smashing into the floor. His write wrist hung limply, useless and broken. The doll stood up, grabbing his legs. Garry lurched foreards to get away, but it was no use- the doll had started dragging him towards the door. Grabbing his rose, he clawed at the floor, trying to get a hold of anything that would stop the doll from pulling him to his doom. As the doll dragged him through the frame, it tried shutting the door, hitting the hand that held the rose. it fell from his fingers an onto the floor as the door closed with a click.

There was only one petal left on his rose, wilting on the already dead stem.


	4. Chapter 4

Maka thought she had heard someone yelling. While the others were standing around talking (more like fighting- Mary was finding a way to insult everyone) she tried listening closely, and heard it again.

"IB! MARY! HEL-" came the frantic voice, cut off by something. _Probably Garry_, Maka thought. Turning to the group, she crossed her arms. She tapped her foot impatiently. Tsubaki and Ib were standing by while they watched everyone yell at each other, mainly Mary, who looked like she had better things to do then stand around killing the egos of a bunch of hormonal teenagers. Liz was pleading with Soul and Black Star to try not punching a little girl, while Kid and Patty were trying to hold them back. Mary was busy cleaning her knife on her dress.

"Guys….?" Maka asked.

"SNOT-NOSED BRAT!" Soul yelled at Mary. Mary rolled her eyes.

"Old geezer," she muttered. Soul flailed his arms wildly.

"FOR THE LAST TIME I AM NOT AND OLD GEEZER! I'M-" Soul started but Maka cut him off.

"GUYS!" she shouted. Everyone stopped fighting and turned her way, giving her surprised looks. Maka was never one to yell, especially at Soul, considering he was her weapon. Maka placed her hands on her hips.

"For the love of death," she demanded, "did you hear that? Any of you?" Everyone exchanged glances, then shook their heads.

"Well, that's because you were all fighting like a bunch of two year olds!" Maka continued, "Did you not hear someone crying for help? Because I did!" Mary rolled her eyes and pocketed her knife.

"Garry," she said, "he really needs to learn to defend himself, what a wimp." Ib and Tsubaki's eyes widened.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Soul said, "Hold up-" he jerked his arm away from Kid, who raised his hands ind defense if Soul was about to hit him "- wasn't he trying to help you and Ib out of this place?"

"Pfft! Are you kidding me?! With the way things were going, it was as if Ib and i were trying to help him out of the gallery!" She bunched up the fabric of her skirt as she laughed, her face getting red. Ib looked ask f she was about to cry.

"B-but Mary…! Why would you say such things?!" she asked, her voice trembling. Mary stamped her foot.

"Oh, grow up! He kinda deserves it, don't you think?" she said scornfully, "after he said he'd try to protect you?! After he said he was going to help you get your parents back from that picture frame?!"

"Why, you little-" Soul started as Ib began crying harder. Kid grabbed Soul's arm and jerked him back, shaking his head.

"No, Soul. If Mary is from the ripped painting, she can hurt you severely. She is armed, after all." Soul grimaced, staring at Mary's pocket. Mary gave Kid a sinister smile.

"Oh, so you know….?" she asked, "well, then I guess you won't mind if I do this….?" In a blur of blond hair and green cloth, Mary had the knife pressed up against Tsubaki's throat. The blade sliced her skin a bit, leaving a thin red line.

"Tsubaki!" Black Star cried as he started to run at them, but Mary then gestured towards the knife.

"You hurt me, your precious little friend here dies," she spat at them. Black Star curled his fists in anger. His muscles flexed. Tsubaki had tears running down her face. _He hasn't been this scared since I fought my brother_, she thought as Black Star gritted his teeth.

"Fine," he finally said, "what do you want exactly?" Mary gave a small laugh.

"Isn't it obvious?" the girl asked, "I want Garry dead so I can have little Ib here all to myself!" She gave Ib an affectionate gaze. Ib drew herself away from Mary and grabbed Maka's hand, holding git tightly.

"Maka, I'm scared," Ib whispered to her, "what's gonna happen to your friend? And…. Garry?"

"Don't worry, we'll get everyone out. It'll be alright," Maka gave Ib's hand a reassuring squeeze.

"Now, you all know how Little Miss Smarty-Pants here heard someone calling for help?" Mary asked with a sneer, "Well, that was in fact, Garry. I want you to come with me to where Garry is-" Mary surveyed the small group- "and I want you to get his rose for me. Got it?"

"Ahahaha!" Patty laughed, "you sure are funny!" Liz clapped a hand over her sister's mouth, smiling nervously. Mary shot a glare in their direction, "What did you just say?" Liz shook her head furiously.

"Nothing! Nothing at all!" she said, then whispered in Patty's ear, "Shut up! You'll get Tsubaki killed!"

"Oops! Sorry!" Patty giggled and Liz rolled her eyes.

"Now," Mary said, "let's go get Garry. I'll have this one at knife point the entire time, so be careful about what you say or do, or I will cut you!" She said this almost cheerily, with a sunny smile on her face. Glumly, everyone followed. Tsubaki had to stoop low as she walked as Mary held the knife to her throat. Black Star clenched and unclenched his fist, grinding his teeth.

Hands shot out of the walls and brushed their ankles. Soul jumped as one grabbed him and he crashed into Maka.

"Soul! Maka scolded him as he cowered behind her, "be careful!"

"S-s-sorry, Maka," he stuttered. Kid meanwhile, was having a pretty difficult time himself. Everywhere he looked, nothing was symmetrical. At all. The dolls hanging from ropes always had uneven strings, or one eye was bigger then the other. He tugged at his collar as he sweated.

"You can do this, Kid," he said to himself, "just focus on finding Garry and getting everyone out." He unbuttoned the first few buttons of his shirt and sighed, trying to cam himself down. Mary had them all turn down a hallway.

"I suggest you all jump," Mary said, just as hands jumped at them from the walls. Everyone jumped as high as they could before they were snatched. Once they landed they broke into a jog, until Mary stopped in front of a purple door. Pushing Tsubaki forward, she pressed the tip against her back.

"Open it," Mary commanded, prodding Tsubaki with the knife. grasping ht doorknob, Tsubaki pulled, but the door wouldn't open.

"I-it's locked!" Tsubaki whined. Mary slashed Tsubaki's arm with the blade. Tsubaki's blood was dark against her pale skin. She winced as it dripped.

"Well unlock it," Mary said impatiently. Black star looked furious.

"M-maybe's there's a key somewhere?" Tsubaki suggested.

"Maybe…." Mary said, then waved the knife at the others, "find it! Find the key, now!" There was a frantic look in her blue eyes as everyone started searching the walls and the ground. Tsubaki ran her hands along the doorframe to see if there was some sort of secret panel. Unfortunately there was not.

"Fuck!" Mary stamped her foot in frustration, then went "Ah!" Bending over, she picked something up off the floor. It was the stem of a flower, a single blue petal wilting at the end of it. Ib gasped.

"Garry's flower," she told Maka. Maka then looked at the floor. Another blue petal lay on the floor, along with a trail of blood. It started halfway down the hall and stopped when it got to the door.

"He was dragged through there," Maka gestured to the door, "we have to get in and then get out."

"Well, get the door unlocked!" Mary yelled, her voice booming in the silent hallway, "and do it now!" She gripped the flower in her fist so tight, there was a snap, and the stem was broken in two.

"No!" Ib reached out and snatched it from Mary. Suddenly, there was a muffled scream.

"Ha!" Mary said triumphantly, "now get the door open! The flower is his lifeline! He doesn't have much time to live!" Mary then grabbed Ib, taking the knife to her throat, "and neither do you, I'm afraid!" With a flash of silver, Mary slit Ib's throat, the blood flowing freely. Soon Mary's hands were stained as well as a good portion of her dress. Ib's body fell to the floor with a thump, landing at her feet. Mary then picked up Ib's red rose and plucked out every petal, snapping the stem. The delicate red petals littered the floor.

"You fucking murderer!" Soul cried, "what the hell?!"

"Now she can stay here forever," Mary said, with an insane smile on her face, "now I'll never be alone!" There was a bang on the door from the other side.

"Ib! IB?!" came Garry's hysterical calls, "Fuck! NO!" There was a loud crash, and a crack. Tsubaki widened her eyes, then banged on the door.

"Garry?" Garry?!" she shouted. No answer. Black Star joined her, kicking the door with all his might as Tsubaki punched the wood over and over. The wood of the door splintered and cracked until there was a hole big enough for a grown man to fit through. Mary then laughed maniacally as she licked the blood on her knife. Soul smacked her upside the head.

"It's open! You got what you want! Now let Garry go!" he demanded. Mary licked her lips.

"That's not how it works," she said calmly, holding up Garry's broken rose, "remember this?"

"Give me that," Soul growled.

"I don't think I want to," Mary said, "let's go in and see him, shall we?" She skipped cheerfully into the room. Soul cracked his knuckles as they followed Mary through the door and into the room. Kid screeched and tried running back out but Liz grabbed his collar and pulled him back.

"I know it's creepy and nothing is symmetrical, but you have to deal with it," Liz said, "for Garry's sake, for Ib. Okay?" Kid could hear the fear in her voice as she looked around the room, but knew she was trying her best to be brave. Mary waved her knife in the air.

"Oh Garry….?" she sang into the darkness. Dolls were sitting everywhere- small ones hid under tables and lay on the floor. Medium sized ones leaned against tables and sat in chairs. And in a portrait on the wall opposite them was a painting of the biggest one. It had a sinisterly evil smile painted on its face, red eyes bulging and large. Mary did not receive an answer, but heard a voice from one of the corners.

"See, I feel that way as well…." came Garry's voice from the darkness. Cautiously, Black Star walked towards a corner of the room.

"It's so nice to have someone to talk to," Garry said, as they all got a full view of him. He was sitting in a corner, his arms wrapped around his knees. His feet were tapping the ground as he rocked back and forth. His chin was bloody where the skin had split open. Dolls were surrounding him. One was in his lap, and he was petting it as if it were a beloved animal instead of a creepy doll.

Garry smiled at the rabbit that sat in his lap. The fat pink ball of fluff twitched it nose. He had heard noises coming from outside, but now they joined him. Rabbits sat everywhere he could see- pink, blue, green and purple. Some were big, others were medium. Most were small.

"You're such a good listener," Garry said as he pet the rabbit's fur. The rabbit didn't answer, just sat in silence. On the wall was a portrait of a fairly large pink bunny.

"Garry! I see you're well!" came Mary's voice. He ignored it and continued to talk.

"I think I hear Mary," he said, "I think Mary is quite frightening, don't you? After all…."

Black Star pointed to Garry, "Is he high or something?"

"….. Mary did escape from her frame. I didn't trust her at all," Garry babbled, "but I guess it's okay now because I'm out! Bunny, I'm free of the gallery, isn't that great?" Maka shook her head as Garry gave a small laugh.

"No, it seems like he's hypnotized," Maka said as she crouched down in front of him and waved a hand in his face. He didn't blink, his eyes wide open, expressing a certain creepy calm. A blank smile spread across his face as he then blinked at Maka.

"Ib….?" he asked, "Oh, Ib, so nice of you to join me! So Mary didn't kill you after all?" Maka looked back at the others, then at Garry.

"Uh, Garry, I'm not Ib. My name is Maka," Maka said, "I'm going to bring you home, okay?"

"Home…" Garry said, "I thought we were home, Ib? Where's Mary?" Garry was not staring at Maka when he spoke, or at anything for that matter. His purple eyes flitted around the room. Patty laughed at Liz as she kicked a doll away from her foot. It landed with a thump somewhere in the darkness. Mary walked briskly up to Garry and slashed at his face with the knife. The doll fell from his lap as he bought a shaking hand to his face. His fingers came away sticky and red.

"What….?" he looked at his hand, and then at Mary. The knife in her hand glistened with his blood. His eyes widened, his pupils dilated. Scuttling backwards, he kicked the doll away from him once he realized the inevitable truth: he had been going insane, thinking the dolls were actually soft rabbits instead of the creepy things that terrorized him for three months. Mary held up his rose, broken and almost dead.

"See, Garry, this represents you," she said with a dead calmness. Garry's chest heaved as he tried to catch his breath. Mary took a clumsy step towards him, as if she was learning how to walk for the first time. Her knuckles were turning white as she held her knife in her fist.

"Mary….." Garry warned, his voice trembling. Mary took another step towards him, raising her knife. Before she could take a third step, she tumbled forwards, leaning over Garry as she hit the wall. Her blond hair brushed his face as she shook, a creepy smile added to her scary demeanor. The rose had fallen to the floor. Quickly, Maka picked it up, cradling it in her palms as if it were a newborn baby. Kid was whispering to Liz and Patty, and they stood in their usual battle tactic formation. We have to be ready for anything- especially if he gets hurt, Kid thought as Mary's body twitched slightly. It was hard to see Garry through a curtain of hair, but they noticed his leg laying straight out in front of him, so Kid focused on his leg.

"Remember Ib?" Mary asked, turning her blade. A window on the wall next to the painting let moonlight spill into the room, the blade glinting in the light. Garry nodded, and said, "Y-y-yes…. Mary….."

"You want to see her?" Mary's voice had a little squeak as she spoke, raising her knife.

"Mary, what do you mean?" Maka heard Garry ask, "Mary…? What did you do with Ib?"

"You want to see her….?" Mary repeated. Kid saw Garry's leg twitch. Liz slightly jumped, ready to go, but Kid put a hand on her shoulder.

"Not yet," he warned.

"But-" Liz started, but Kid cut her off.

"I know," he said, "I'll tell you when, okay?" Liz and Patty nodded. Kid looked at the others as if to say, "I'll tell you when, okay?" and everyone braced themselves for what was to come, standing in whatever battle stance they could think of.

"Mary…?" Garry asked, "where's Ib?" What happened to Ib?" Kid squinted as Mary raised her knife. Mary poised it above his face.

"Why so serious, Garry?" she asked. With the might of a warrior, she clutched the collar of his coat in her hands and threw him to the ground. Soul bared his teeth as Garry landed with a loud thud. _I can't just sit here and watch_, he thought, _Kid better have a good plan… _Mary then straddled Garry's chest, causing him to gasp for air- it felt to him as if someone placed a ton of bricks on him. Mary raised her knife again, grabbing at his throat with her free hand. She then poked and prodded his face until she was able to hold his head down by pressing her weight against him.

"Mary….." Garry warned again, his tone pure fear.

"I asked you a question!" Mary barked, spitting in his face. He flinched as her saliva hit his skin. Garry didn't answer, instead whimpered like a dog that had just been caught digging holes under the fence in the backyard. She raised her knife again, and Garry flinched. Mary smiled, licking her lips.

"Why so serious, Garry?" she asked, "are you scared? Oh, please don't be, I don't want to hurt you!" She sounded as if she was talking to a child. She pouted, "Pwease don't be scawed," she mimicked a toddler as an evil smile came back to her, "I only want to kill you!" Garry opened his mouth to scream, but as sound came out, Mary plunged her knife into his mouth, thrusting it in and out. Tsubaki screamed and tried to run to him, but Black Star held her back.

"No, Tsubaki, remember the plan!" he said as they struggled.

"But Garry- Mary is hurting him!" she shouted as tears ran down her face, "Black Star, we have to do something!" As Garry's strangled, bloodcurdling screams filled the air, Maka gulped, grabbing Soul's hand and squeezing it.

"Soul…." she said, her green eyes widening. Soul squeezed her hand back as he watched the scene play out before him: a psychotic mass murdering piece of art pull a knife in and out of a human being's mouth, scarring him for eternity and not really helping his mental judgement. Mary then took her free hand and grabbed Garry's lips, pressing hem against the knife as she continued to move it. Blood dripped down his face, feeling cold against his skin as it dripped into his ears and then on the floor. His legs and arms thrashed from underneath Mary as she continued to cut him, laughing and smiling as if this were a present given to her on her birthday


	5. Chapter 5

Kid cringed as he watched. Mary had probably cut the inside of Garry's mouth to shreds by now. She placed the tip of her knife at the corner of Garry's already bloody mouth.

"How about we put a smile on that face, huh?!" Mary was practically screeching as she slit Garry's face even further, making it look like he had a huge smile going from ear to ear on either side of his face. Garry thrashed about. The metal stung where it dug into him. Throwing the knife aside, Mary took hold of his neck and started to hit his head against the floor. Soul winced as he heard every thud when Garry's head connected with the floor.

"Kid…" he warned. Kid tugged a bit at his collar.

"I know, Soul!" Kid said, "remember the plan!" Soul rolled his eyes as a inhuman strangled noise rose from him. Grabbing Maka's hand, he was bathed in light, and when the light was gone, his body was replaced with a long red and black scythe. Maka gripped the handle tightly.

"Screw the plan!" Soul cried, "he's gonna fucking die if we don't do something! Ready Maka?" Maka nodded.

"Let's go!" she agreed, then swung Soul in a circle above her head.

"Maka! Not so fast! I'm getting dizzy!" Soul protested. Raising him high above her head, she charged Mary, who was now slashing at Garry's face again. Garry swung his head from side to side, trying to avoid the blade.

"Mary! Your soul is mine!" Maka cried as she closed in on Mary and swung the blade down on Mary's head, but stopped short.

"Maka! Do it!" Soul shouted. Why had Maka stopped mid swing?!

"I'm trying!" she said, straining against Mary's hold on her arm. Garry, noticing that Mary was occupied with something else, scrambled out from under her. In the blink of an eye, Mary swung her arm, and Maka (with Soul in her hands) sailed through the air and crashed into Garry. There was a loud thunk as she fell on him.

"Shit!" Maka muttered as she got off Garry and rolled him onto his back. His eyes were closed, his face a bloody mess. He groaned.

"Maka!" Soul said as he transformed back into himself, "are you alright?!" Maka nodded, frantically checking Garry for a pulse.

"Yeah, but I don't think he is," she answered, we have to get him out of here, now! These wounds need to be healed and fast, or he'll look like this for the rest of his life."

"I don't hunk we need another Stein," Kid commented, "Liz! Patty- now!" With a light jump, they transformed into the twin guns Kid always used as weapons- moonlight glinting off the metal. Mary sneered at him and hastily ran her knife between her teeth.

"Didn't your mother teach you it's not polite to play with guns?" she asked sarcastically as she threw her knife like a javelin. it hissed as it spun through the air, then met its target: Kid.

The blade ripped through the fabric of his clothes and sunk itself deep into his chest. He gasped as he fell to his knees, grabbing the handle. Liz and Patty returned to their human form.

"Don't worry, Kid, we got this," Liz reassured him as Patty changed back into gun form. Liz tingled as the handle hit her palm, the metal cold against her skin. Placing her hand on the trigger, she pointed her sister at Mary, who stood over Garry, Soul, and Maka. Soul had went back to being a scythe, Maka wielding him defensively. Liz's hand shook as she tried to keep her focus. _Be careful Patty_ Liz thought, _we don't want to hurt Maka or Soul- nor Garry, especially_.

"Hahaha! Go it!" Patty laughed as a ball of energy formed at the mouth of the gun. She pulled the trigger, and the purple blast of energy sailed through the air, landing in Mary's face.

Her small body flew until it crashed into the wall. When she hit the floor, her body crumpled in a ball. The painting of the doll watched the scene, looking as if it were watching a nice television program. Liz trembled as the doll then opened its mouth to emit a low pitched laugh, making the room look as if it were shaking. Tsubaki and Black Star were trying their best to protect Kid from the other dolls in the room that had started moving, Black Star using all sorts of martial arts techniques.

"Tsubaki! Help us!" Maka shouted as the ground began to quake. With a thundering boom, a crack began to wind along the floor.

"Go, Tsubaki!" Black Star said, "I got Kid, help them!" Tsubaki leapt lightly across the gap in the floor and grabbed Maka's hand. She took hold of the end of her ponytail, which turned into a chain. Swinging it above her head, she tossed it over to Black Star, who caught it in mid-air.

"Hold on!" she warned and Maka wrapped her arms around Tsubaki's neck as she jumped into the chasm. Soul was trying to pick Garry up by himself. The unconscious boy's body was heavy as Soul finally heaved him over his shoulder with a grunt.

"Soul! C'mon!" Maka shouted. Soul backed up with Garry in his arms, then ran towards the gap. With all his strength he tossed Garry across the gap.

"Catch!" he shouted as he then jumped in himself, grabbing Maka's ankles so he wouldn't fall. Black Star's eyes widened as Garry hurtled at him. He tightened his grip on Tsubaki's chain and tugged, pulling the three of them up and out just as they were about to smash into the wall of the abyss. Patty had transformed back into a human and she and Liz were now frantically trying to pinpoint where they would be able to catch Garry's body.

"Got him!" Patty laughed as Garry landed safely in her arms. Because he had a lot of momentum, she ended up falling as he landed on her. Pushing him off her, she sat up, waving her arms. Liz wiped her forehead, sighing with relief.

"I'm okay!" Patty shouted with glee. Rubble fell from the ceiling as the doll in the frame laughed again.

"Let's get outta here!" Black Star gulped as he saw Mary started to get up, using the wall for support, "Tsubaki! Smoke bomb mode!"

"Heh, heh, heh…. you can't leave!" Mary shrieked, "NO ONE CAN LEAVE!"

"Got it!" In a puff of green smoke, the group disappeared, leaving Mary screaming in agony.

Lord Death, Spirit, and Stein were huddled in front of the full- length mirror, watching intensely as the scene played out before them. Spirit was rocking back and forth as he watched Maka and Soul fight Mary.

"Make Daddy proud, Maka!" he suddenly shouted at the glass, even though he knew they wouldn't hear him. Stein rolled his eyes as he took a pack of Marlboro's from his lab coat pocket and took one out. With a sigh he lit it, the air soon filled with cigarette smoke. Lord Death waved the smoke away from him.

"Do you really have to smoke in here?" he asked, annoyed. Stein shrugged as he held the cigarette between his fingers and blew a cloud towards the mirror, fogging the glass.

"Do you have to watch everything they do?" he asked. Spirit snorted as he watched Soul toss Garry's body across the chasm, "You idiot! He could have fallen in!"

"Well, no," Lord Death answered.

"Then I can smoke," Stein said matter- of- factly as he stubbed the cigarette out with the toe of his boot. Spirit was now holding the mirror tightly, his face squished against it.

"Maka! My little Maka did it! She saved the guy!" he cried with happiness as if she hadn't ever done this before.

"Get over yourself," Stein said as the image in the mirror faded. They were soon staring at their own reflections again, "We'll have to patch them up, you know."

"Who?" Spirit asked.

"Were you not watching?" he asked with a flat tone.

"I wasn't really paying attention to the others," Spirit admitted.

"Well, the three of them- Tsubaki, Death The Kid, and Garry," stein counted on his fingers as he listed the names, "Tsubaki only needs a bandage for her arm, but Kid will need help getting that knife out. If they already pulled it out, he'll just need some disinfectant and some rest. Garry on the other hand…" he trailed off as he thought about the boy's injuries and smiled. He was going to have fun with that one, that's for sure.

"Yeah, what happened to him was pretty crazy," Spirit rubbed his head and gave a nervous laugh.

"It wasn't crazy," Stein said, "it was cruel. It was abominable. it was horrific, it was-"

"I think we get the point, Professor," Lord Death interrupted, "I believe they'll have to skip a few days of classes to recover. We'll have Marie and Sid help keep them on track in the meantime." Stein and Spirit then grabbed the files from his desk.

"I guess we won't be needing these then!" Spirit then began tearing the paper in half. Before he could make it halfway through the page, Stein swiped it from him.

"Dumbass! We need these!" he said, "we'll need circumstantial evidence and statistics to help with this case!" Spirit raised his hands in defense.

"Okay! Okay!" he said, "we should go to the front to meet hem, they're probably gonna be here soon!" Lord Death waved Spirit and Stein towards the door.

"Good idea," he said, "I'll be here if you need me, so go on."

"Are you sure?" Stein asked, "I mean, your son was inured-"

"Who cares?!" Spirit interrupted, "I get to see my Maka!" In a rush, he ran out the door and down the hall, screaming Maka's name joyfully.

"Ignore him, he's a sentimental idiot," Lord Death said as he and Stein watched his retreating form until they couldn't see him.

"I know that," Stein gave a chuckle, "but are you sure you don't want to come?" Lord Death nodded.

"Knowing my son, it would probably hurt him to let his father see him like that," Lord Death said.

"You mean he doesn't want you to see him injured?" Stein asked. Lord Death shook his head.

"He doesn't want to hurt his pride," Lord Death explained, "and he doesn't want me to think of him as a failure."

"But they didn't fail," Stein said, "they rescued the boy…. man….. whatever he is." He was really going to have to figure that out if he was going to help the kid heal. _I'll need to fix the students medical records, then_, he thought.

"I know, and he did all he could," Lord Death said, "but my son always feels he can do more than what he's capable of. He doesn't want me to be disappointed in him."

"Well, are you? Disappointed in him, I mean."

"Of course not," Lord Death shook his head, "I am loud of my son in every way and I applaud his efforts to everything he does. He's the best thing that ever happened in my life, and I hope that one day, he'll be able to accomplish everything he's dreamed of. Now enough of this mushy-gushy talk- go and bring the others in.


	6. Chapter 6

The group wearily climbed the stairs of the school building. They had taken the knife out of Kid's chest and liz and Patty were now carefully carrying him up the stairs, his coat used to stop the bleeding- the knife was now in Liz's pocket. Soul had Garry's body slung over his shoulder, grunting with each step he took. Garry's face was pale from the loss of blood, the substance crusting on his face.

"Why… are there so many…. stairs?" Black Star panted, "so… tired!"

"Are you…. serious?!" Soul gasped for breath as they reached the top. He plopped himself on the concrete and lay down, Garry's body hitting the cement with a crack. Blood started oozing out of his cuts again.

"Soul! Don't break the guy!" Maka scolded as Soul closed his eyes.

"You weren't carrying him up the stairs!" Soul complained.

"Well, he needs hospitalization and dropping him won't do any good!" Maka retorted. Black Star wiped sweat from his forehead and scanned the area. The front entrance to the school was empty, except for themselves. He then pointed at the door, which creaked on its hinges.

"Professor Stein is here," he said. Stein gave a small wave. Maka turned and grimaced when she saw her dad with him. _Crap…._ she thought as he waved his arms wildly.

"MAKA!" he cried, running and giving her a hug, lifting her off her feet. Soul snickered.

"Hi, Dad," Maka said, an annoyed expression on her face. Stein helped Soul get up as Tsubaki and Black Star help Liz and Patty with Kid. Stein stood over him, inspecting the wound.

"Jus thought," he said, "It's a good thing you got the knife out. All he needs now is bed rest. Do you have the knife with you?" Liz nodded, then reached in her pocket. Holding it gingerly between her fingers, she handed it to him.

"Yeah, here," she said, "why do you need it?" Taking a plastic bag from his coat, he opened it and dropped the knife inside.

"Piece of evidence for the case," Stein explained as he sealed the bag shut, "take this, Spirit." He shoved the bag at Spirit, who took it carefully in his outstretched hands. He jerked his chin at Garry.

"That the kid?" Spirit asked.

"Yeah," Maka said, "is he going to be okay?" Stein shrugged.

"We'll need to bring him in to get a good look- this looks really bad," Stein lifted Garry's head to look at the cuts, then gently picked him up, "how about we get Marie?" Carrying Garry bridal-style, Stein walked back into the school, the others following.

"Marie!" Stein shouted in the corridor, his voice booming in the silence, "Marie!"

"Yes! I heard you! I hear-" Marie yelled back, then smiled when she saw them, "Oh, hi guys! How was the mission?" She twirled a piece of blond hair on her finger.

"Well, we were able to rescue at least one of them," Soul explained. Spirit raised an eyebrow.

"One?" he asked, "what about Ib?" Soul stared at the ground, tapping the floor with the toe of his shoe.

"She, uh," his voice was somber, "…."

"She what?" Spirit asked excitedly, "escaped on her own? Developed death scythe powers?"

"She died."

Spirit's face fell once Soul said this. The finally of the statement was like a dead weight was crushed onto his shoulders. _She shouldn't have died,_ Soul thought, _it wasn't right_. Spirit hefted Garry over his shoulder.

"Well, we should probably get this one to the infirmary, no?" he asked, breaking the silence. Marie raised an eyebrow.

"Are you sure you should be carrying him like that?" she asked, "what if the blood rushes to his head?" Stein grunted.

"It's fine, it's fine," Stein said as he walked away, "he's unconscious anyway. Now follow me. We'll need your help.

Sid's jaw fell open when Stein walked in, carrying the kid on his back. Marie and Spirit were with him as well, along with Maka, Soul, and the others. Stein jutted his chin at the cot by the window.

"Can we put this one there?" he asked. For a moment, Sid stood there, not knowing what to do, then authored his sense, rushing to pull back the covers. Gently, Stein placed Garry down. The boy's purple hair swayed a little as his head lolled to the side.

"Is this the kid?" Sid asked, grimacing as he turned the boys head to look at the cuts.

"Yeah, got cut pretty bad, I'm afraid," Stein said, "Lord Death's son got stabbed as well, and Tsubaki will need a bandage for that arm." Tsubaki waved her hands. Pulling out a drawer, Sid retrieved the roll of bandages and pulled at it, ripping it off with his teeth.

"No! No, I'm fine!" she protested. Stein rolled his eyes.

"Do you want that to get infected?' he asked.

"No, sir," she said, as Sid wrapped her arm, tying it tightly with a large knot. She bowed, "Thank you."

"So what's the deal?" Sid asked Maka and Soul as Liz and Patty helped Sid put Kid in the cot next to Garry's, "I mean, almost everyone got hurt- this one especially." He laughed as he pointed at Garry's face.

"I'm sorry we didn't get fatally injured for your enjoyment," Maka said flatly. She grabbed Soul's arm and started walking with him towards the door, "Come on, Soul," she said, "we should probably get back to the dorm, let them rest up." Soul shrugged and followed her, dragging his feet,

"You guys wanna join us?" he asked the others, peering over his shoulder.

"Sure, why not?" Liz said. Stein watched the kids go, the door making a loud slam behind them. Spirit followed, questioning Maka until their voices could no longer be heard. Sid cracked his knuckles as he put the bandage roll back in his desk, taking a seat on the plush swivel chair.

"So, what're we gonna do now?" he asked, "I mean, both are unconscious, so we won't be able to get answers outta them-"

"We'll wait until they wake up," Stein interrupted, "we'll be able to know for sure what happened." Marie gaped at him, fixing her black eyepatch.

"But that will take a while, don't you think?" she asked, "I mean, Kid may wake up tomorrow, or even in a few hours-"

"And that's helpful," Stein said.

"- But with the other one-"

"His name is Garry," Stein corrected her.

"- it may take a few days, weeks, months- heck it may take years!" She hadn't realized she was practically yelling, her voice rising to a higher volume. Kid moaned and rolled over on his side. Stein put a finer to his lips, shushing her.

"And Garry is even more helpful," he said, "so we'll just have to wait, even if it does take that long."

"But how would he be more helpful?" Marie asked as she stared at him, carefully inspecting the injuries on his face.

"Because he was there longer then anyone. Longer then Ib, and definitely longer then Maka and the others were," Stein explained. Sid grunted.

"How long was he there?" Marie's voice was trembling- she was a very sensitive, emotional person and hated seeing others get hurt.

"Eh, about three, three and a half months," Stein said. Reaching up, he grabbed the bolt in his head and twisted it, "give or take, you know?" Sid grunted again. Stein jutted his chin at him, "And what's so grunt-worthy about it, huh, Sid?"

"Well, if the kid was there for three months, who knows what he was exposed to in that time?" Sid said. Stein shrugged.

"And what are you suggesting?" he asked as he took his pack of cigarettes out of his pocket, placing it tightly between his lips.

"What do you mean? You of all people should know what I'm saying," Sid guffawed, "he might be, well,, you know…"

"Insane?" Stein asked. Sid nodded as Stein then went to light the cigarette in his mouth and said, "I know. That's why we have Marie here." He gestured to Marie.

"And why am I here?" she asked with a pleasant smile.

"Because you're gonna do what you did with Crona," Stein said.

"Help him?" Marie was confused, "I mean, I tried helping Crona, but he didn't really want to open up. What if that happens with Garry?" Stein blew a cloud of smoke in her direction. She coughed and waved it away from her face.

"If that happens, we'll have to get the kids to help him, similar to Crona."

"And if that doesn't work?"

"We'll have to scare the answers out of him," Stein said, "and I really hope we won't have to go there.


	7. Chapter 7

Kid blinked as light filled his vision. Reaching up, he rubbed his eyes. The blanket laying on top of him was heavy and uncomfortable. As he went to sit up, his chest exploded with pain. He winced, placing a hand on the bandages wrapped around his torso.

"What the-" he muttered as he looked around. He was in the infirmary at school. Sid was busy writing something at the desk while Marie idly sat in the swivel chair and spun herself in circles. Garry was lying in the cot next to his. Marie stopped spinning when she noticed Kid sitting up.

"Hey, Sid! He's up- he's up!" she sad as she shook the zombie's shoulder. He jerked his arm away.

"Garry or Kid?" Sid asked, not looking up, "and you better say Garry, because that will make my job a lot easier."

"No, it's Kid," Marie confirmed, "I figured he would be up sooner anyway." Sid got up from his chair, plopping his work on the desk.

"Well, had a nice nap, I hope?" Sid asked sarcastically. Kid rolled his eyes, pulling the overs off him, He was still wearing the clothes he wore on the mission.

"Ha ha, very funny," Kid joked, "so, what's up? Am I okay? Is Garry still alive?"

"Yeah, yeah," Sid said nonchalantly, "you're fine. As for this one-"

"Oh! His name is Garry!" Marie said excitedly.

"- We aren't sure. We still need to run some tests," Sid ignored Marie's comment and waved her away. Slumping her shoulders, she sat herself back in the swivel chair and spun herself around once more. Kid straightened his jacket, taking a peek at Garry again. The slashes on his face were still open, slowly oozing, some starting to scab over but just barely.

"Aren't you going to wrap those up?" Kid asked gesturing to the cuts. Sid shrugged as he then picked up his pen and began writing something in his paperwork.

"Nah," he said, "Stein told me to leave them open. They'll need oxygen if they're gonna heal."

"But what if they get infected?" Kid asked. He felt as if there were a noter reason to keeping them open, but didn't question it- Stein probably did just want them o heal, but knowing him, it might be something strange, modt likely involving a dissection.

"We got it covered, Kid, don't worry about it," Sid waved a hand at him, "now go join your little friends with whatever the heck it is they're doing, alright?" Kid shrugged and said goodbye to Marie, who jabbered away, "Tell Maka and them I say hello! And be sure to have Crona join you- he wasn't able to come for the mission remember? He's been in his room the entire time!" Kid raised an eyebrow at her- when was Crona part of the mission? _Maybe he was unable to come because of something with Ragnarok? No, he probably didn't have anywhere to go for the summer,_ he thought as he traipsed out the door and down the corridor. The hallway was silent- obviously it was because no one else was there besides hims and the gang. He could hear people talking as he walked further towards Soul and Maka's dorm. The door creaked on its hinges as it opened, letting light spill into the hallway. Soul's shadow elongated as he stepped out, saying over his shoulder, "I'm gonna go see how Kid is doing-" he stopped when he saw Kid standing there. Kid gave a small wave.

"Hey," he said.

"Hey, I was just about to-"

"Yeah, I heard," Kid gave him a small smile, "thanks for bothering to care. I'm fine, don't worry. Can't say the same for Garry though." Walking in the room, everyone was in a semi-circle, staring at the movie on the screen. Popcorn littered the floor and a box of half-eaten pizza was lying open on the table. Black Star was eating a slice of pizza, stringy cheese stuck to his chin. Liz and Patty were playing rock paper scissors over who knows what, while Tsubaki, Maka and Crona were watching the screen. Tsubaki and Crona were clinging to each other with fear while Maka was just sitting there, shoving popcorn in her mouth. A girl with blond hair in a skimpy cheerleading outfit was running around onscreen, and a man wearing a hockey mask was chasing her with a chainsaw.

"Yo, Kid's here," Soul knocked lightly on the door as he and Kid walked in.

"Really?" Everyone stopped what they were ding and crowded around him, shouting questions.

"Are you okay?" Tsubaki asked.

"Yu must be hungry," Liz said, "you look hungry, are you hungry?" She took the bowl of popcorn from Maka and shoved it in Kid's lap. Patty laughed as she watched the guy with the chainsaw catch the blond cheerleader and saw her head off. Crona wiped sweat from his forehead and gave a small wave, Ragnarok sticking out of his back and waving his tiny fists.

"Hi, Kid," Crona said meekly.

"C'mon, kid! Focus on the screen! I'm missing the good part!" Ragnarok complained. Reaching down, he rubbed his fists into Crona's face.

"Ow! Stop! Stop!" Crona protested, trying o get his hands out of his face. Ragnarok was relentless.

"Not until we turn around to watch the movie!" Ragnarok demanded. Kid gave a small wave at Crona's back. _It must suck to have a bully_, Kid thought, _but I guess it's worse when the bully lives in your spine. _

"I'm fine, I'm fine," Kid pushed everyone back a step, "give me some space, okay?"

"Sorry, Kid," Maka said, "Oh! How's Garry?"

"What?" Kid asked.

"Yes! Is Garry still out cold or is he up yet?" Tsubaki added to Maka's question.

"Oh, uh, no, he isn't up yet," Kid said.

"Well, did they at least heal his face?" Black Star chimed in. He watched the cheese on his pizza stretch until the thin string broke.

"Uh, no," Kid said, "I asked Sid why, but he said Stein wanted to leave them open for now. Marie was there too- don't know why though. And she says hi, bye the way."

"So his face is still all bloody?" Black Star asked through stringy cheese and tomato sauce.

"Yup," Kid said, grimacing when he remembered seeing the blood slowly ooze from the cuts. He shuddered as he reached into the bowl of popcorn and shoved a handful of it in his mouth.

"That sucks- when do you think he'll wake up?" Liz asked as Patty clapped her hands and laughed.

"Haha! She just got dismembered! Ha!" she cried gleefully as the guy with the chainsaw chopped off the girl's limbs on the screen. Crona screamed as he hugged Patty tightly, shutting his eyes.

"Tell me when it's over, tell me when it's over, tell me when it's over!" Crona muttered over and over again as Ragnarok bopped him on the head.

"You're such a wet blanket!" Ragnarok chided, "grow up already!"


	8. Chapter 8

Stein carefully unwrapped the bandages he put on Gary's wounds the night before. When he had arrived at the infirmary in the morning to check on his condition, the bandages were soaked in red, and Garry had been choking on his fluids. Marie and Sid watched with agony as each bandage was ripped off. The cuts didn't look any better then before.

"This is absolutely disgusting," Marie said, covering her face. She then opened her fingers and peeked through them.

"Then why are you watching?" Sid asked. His skin looked bluer then it already was, and his stomach was queasy. There was a knock at the door. Stein was still concentrated on Garry as he said, "If you don't like watching this, then do something else. And that something else could be answering the door, no?" Marie and Sid aced to answer he door, and they both grabbed the handle.

"Please, let me get it!" Marie said.

"Heck no!" Sid retorted, "I get queasy when I see blood!" Marie rolled her eyes.

"Oh please, you're already dead!" she barked, pushing Sid out of the way. She blew a strand of yellow-orange hair from her face before opening the door.

"Oh, hello kids! Come to see him?" Marie asked as Maka and Soul walked in, stepping over Sid, wh lay on the floor.

"That would be great, thanks" Maka said. Stein's back was to them, his figure obscuring Garry's form that sat on the table. His feet almost touched the ground when he sat on the operating table. Shoes pounding on the floor, Stein walked over to his desk, revealing Garry. Soul grimaced at the sight of him. Garry's body was tall and skinny, his skin deathly pale due to the loss of blood. The wounds on his face wet still red and raw looking.

"Wow, she sure did a job with you," Soul said as he walked closer to inspect him even further. Garry was silent, a forlorn look in his eyes.

"Soul!" Maka scolded him.

'So, how long are you gonna look like Batman's arch nemesis?" Soul asked jokingly. Maka punched his arm, "Ow! Maka!"

"I told you!" Maka warned. Garry's hand searched the area, his eyes looking for something.

"Proffessor Stein? Maka asked. Stein didn't look up from the papers he was working on.

'What is it?" he said, sounding almost bored. Maka gestured to Garry.

"I think he's looking for something," she explained.

"What is it you need, dude?" Soul asked Garry. With his fingers, Garry made the shape of a square in the air. Soul nodded as if he understood- which he didn't.

"A square?" he asked. Garry shook his head and went to open his mouth, then quickly shut it as pain seared in the nerves of his face. The cuts looked as if they were about to rip open.

"Yeah, bad idea, buddy," Stein said as he bought his work over. He shook the blue ballpoint pen he was writing with to get more ink out, and muttered "Crappy pen." Looking up, he asked, "So whaddya need?" Garry pointed at Stein.

"Me?" Stein asked, "I've been here the entire time." Garry shook his head, pointing a Stein's hand- specifically the one that held the pen. Stein held it up, "This?" Garry nodded, then pointed to the paper.

"Pen and paper?" Maka asked. Garry nodded.

"Marie, can we get a pen and some paper for Garry?" Stein yelled over his shoulder. Marie jumped up excitedly, knocking over the chair int eh process, "And Sid?" Stein said, Sid grunted from his spot on the floor.

"Get up," he commanded and with a grunt, the zombie heaved himself upright. Marie, with pen and paper in hand, ran over, and dropped everything as she tripped over Sid as he started getting up. Papers fluttered silently and the pen clattered to the floor. Picking herself up, she gathered the items and dusted of her black and yellow dress.

"Here you go," Marie said as she handed the paper and pen to Garry, "and I'm Marie by the way. I didn't have a chance to introduce myself earlier." At the mention of her name, Garry's eyes went wide. _Oh, shit_, Garry thought, _gotta get out! She's fucking here! _With a crazed loo in his eyes, he jumped from the table, knocking over glass bottles, vials, and paperworks in the process. The vials shattered when it hit the floor.

"Shit!" Stein yelled, "Sid come on! Grab him!" Garry was running towards the zombie frantically, peeking over his shoulder at Marie, who stood there, frozen with terror. Her eyes were wide and filled with tears. With a light flex of his muscles, he jumped the rest of the way to the door and threw it open. The wood hit the wall with a loud bang.

"After him! Let's go!" Stein rushed Maka and Soul out the door as he ran with Sid.

"Be careful!" Marie shouted after them, stepping carefully around broken glass. Maka and Soul were struggling to keep up as they ran. Stein and Sid were way ahead of them, Garry even further away.

"Do you think….." Soul was panting, "we should…just…..leave this to them?" Maka blew her hair out of her face.

"Let's just follow them, see where they go," Maka suggested. Soul groaned.

"But…. I'm so…. tired!" he panted, wiping sweat from his forehead. His feet were sore from running, and his arms were starting to get tired.

Garry ran wildly through the halls of the school. _Where the fuck am I?!_ he thought as he raced through dark corridors. He watched the walls intently as he ran, ready to jump in case a hand shot out at him. _Am I still in the gallery? Was i never really rescued? _He could hear voices shouting for him.

"Hey! Come back!"

"Stop! We don't want to hurt you!" Garry sped up, scanning the ceiling for anything that might swing down on him. He gulped as he noticed blades line the ceilings, sharp and slick. _Will they come down?_ he thought, _Gotta go faster! _The heels of his shoes pounded the red carpet on the floor, leaving muffled footprints on his trail. Skidding to slow down, he turned another corner. There were no windows on the wall for him to signify if it was day or night. Everything was pitch black as he ran, like a blind man in a lion's den, unaware of what could damage him, injure him, kill him. He looked around, seeing nothing but blackness. Squinting, he ran faster, the voices getting softer. Slowing to a jog, he used the wall to support himself. He panted as he tried catching his breath. The cuts at his mouth stung as he opened his mouth to suck in sweet, fresh air. He felt the warm substance drip down from his cuts on either side of his mouth and dribble until it fell off his chin. Wobbling, he tried to continue running. His chest heaved as he tried to regain his momentum.

At the end of the corridor, he heard a small click, and there was a small pool of light spilling onto the carpet in front of an open door. _An exit!_ Garry thought, _please, please, be an exit! _Reaching out, he ran for the light, his eyes in pain from squinting so much. He could almost taste the freedom on his tongue….

"Hey, who wants to come with me to get Soul and Maka?" he heard a voice ask from the light. A shadow splayed on the floor as a figure stepped out into the hallway. Wearing all black, except for small white squares on his shoulders and three white stripes in his hair, Garry couldn't make out the person. Skidding to a top, he put a hand to his face. His fingers came away sticky and warm. Taking a step, he lurched his body forward. The stone on the wall felt cool, rough beneath his fingertips. The person turned, then suddenly jumped when they saw him.

"Hello?" the person called, "who is that? Is that Soul?" Garry panicked as he heard footsteps- the person was coming closer. He froze where he stood, unsure of what to do.

"Kid?" came another vocie- _A girl's voice_, Garry thought as she then stepped out ingot eh hallway as well, "Is there someone out there?"

"Tsubaki, yes!" said Kid, "I believe the person is over there," he pointed a finger right at Garry, "It might be Soul. He won't answer though." Tsubaki laughed, a high pitched noise.

"Come on, Soul, stop joking," Tsubaki called down the hall, "You and Maka should come and join us! The food is almost gone!" He heard them come closer, their footsteps loud. Warm blood dripped off his fingers as he took a step towards them. He felt sweat drip from his forehead, stinging as it dripped into his cuts. Tsubaki and Kid were closer now, probably a foot away. Would they recognize him? Tsubaki reached a hand out in front of her, her pale skin shining in the dark.

"Come on, guys, stop playing around!" she said as her fingers grabbed at the air, then found his hand. Her fingers closed around his, "Your hand feels cold, Soul," she said, "let's get you two warmed up, come on!" Obediently, Garry let Kid and Tsubaki lead him to the room. Her fingers rubbed his hand where it was sticky with blood.

"Soul…?" she asked. Garry was silent. Who's Soul? Garry thought as they turned abruptly and he was emerged in more darkness, the only form of light the television screen. Tsubaki took her hand away, looking at the redness on her fingers, "Are you okay? Is this blood?" Kid swift grabbed Tsubaki's fingers, then grabbed Garry's hand, holding them next to each other.

"Tsubaki, grab a flashlight," Kid demanded. With her free hand, she bent down and searched the floor until she felt the cold metal between her fingers. She picked it up and handed it to Kid. With a click, a small circle of artificial light rested on their hands.

"Soul, your hand looks kinda…." Kid trained the flashlight on Garry's fingers, "big. Did you like, magically grow overnight?" Garry didn't answer. _Please don't put that in my face_, he thought. Kid dropped Tsubaki's hand, and it fell limp at her side. Kid tightened his grip on Garry's arm, feeling for his wrist as he drew the flashlight up his arm, finding the sleeve of a blue coat. Kid squinted as he peered closer at the frayed cuff.

"This is not your varsity jacket, Soul," Kid said, trailing the flashlight up higher to find pale skin, a thin body peeking out from a green tank top covered with muck. Kid's eyes widened.

"You're not Soul! Tsubaki, get the others! This isn't Soul!" Kid sounded a bit surprised as the flashlight flew to Garry's face, revealing the jagged scratches, the smiley-face shaped cuts at his mouth, freshly opened, dripping with blood. A hand flew to Tsubaki's mouth. She felt as if she was about to gag.

"Kid, where did the others go?" she asked, her voice trembling.

"To get more food and stuff…" Kid's voice trailed off as Tsubaki ran from the room. Garry shielded his face as best he could with his other hand, sinking to his knees on the floor at Kid's feet


	9. Chapter 9

Mary tugged at the ends of her long blond hair as she stood up, leaning against the wall for support. Her breath was heavy, her knees hitting against each other. The dolls looked curiously at her, they red eyes glowing dimly. A huge chasm cracked in the floor, leaving a deep dark abyss. Her body trembled as she took a few steps forward, before sinking to her knees. Green cloth pooled around her. Blood was in puddles, stain on her dress and face.

"Heh…heh…" she scanned the room with wide blue eyes. She fisted her dress in her hands. They had escaped. She laughed, her voice bouncing loudly off the walls. The dolls cowered away from her as she laughed.

"How…?" she asked herself as she grabbed a doll sitting nearby. It squeaked as she lifted it, "How did they manage to escape?!" She squished her fingers into the doll's cloth arms, her nails digging into the fabric. With a rip, stuffing started to spill in clumps onto her lap. Laughing maniacally, she picked her knife up off the floor and carefully held it against the doll's neck.

"Can you tell me, little doll?" Mary cocked her head, an insane smile growing on her face, "Huh?!" She started to shake the doll it's head whipping back and forth, "tell me, tell me, TELL ME DAMN IT!" With a swift flick of her wrist, her blade sliced through the doll. It's head bounced to the floor silently, a stitched smile on its face. No one eve escaped the gallery. Garry and those… strangers were the first ones to be able to. Mary sighed, throwing the doll aside. It landed silent in the darkness of the cobwebs in the corner. A breeze blew in from the window, making red flower petals drift from under the door and into the room. They hovered around her until they began to slowly materialize, Ib's form shimmering in front of her. Mary smiled, reaching out and grabbing her hand.

"Oh, Ib," Mary said affectionately, "at least I still have you, right?" The ghost sank to her knees besides Mary and reached out hesitantly, before caressing Mary's cheek. A tear slid down Ib's cheek.

"Ib," Mary said, "will you help me?" The ghost of the little girl was silent, only smiling through her tears. The ghosts fingers were small, the nails replaced by red rose petals. They were delicate and feathery against Mary's skin. The ghost's skin had a blue glow to it, which made Mary blink.

"Why are you glowing, Ib?" Mary asked, leaning forward, "is it to show your love for me?" Mary hoped it was. She wanted Ib to herself ever since she saw her. Of course, the problem in her way was Garry. She leaned in closer to the ghost, their lips a few inches apart.

"Of course, now that he's gone," a slight smile adorned her as she gently crushed her lips against the ghost. Mary could practically smell the scent of the roses as the ghost ran its fingers through her hair. The blue glow became brighter, making Mary shut her eyes. The ghost became relentless, pushing Mary until her back was pressed against the cold hard floor. The dolls peered out of the safety of the darkness to watch what was happening. She moaned gently as its hands roamed her, rubbing against her face, her arms, her legs. Moonlight shone on them- Mary more then the ghost- casting shadows as their bode merged as one. Once Mary opened her eyes, Ib's ghost was fading, the light shining through her head. Running the rose petal nails along Mary's cheek once more, she disappeared completely, a light mist floating above Mary. The rose petals fluttered landing softly on her eyes. Breathing in the heavy scent of the flowers, Mary smiled.

"Oh, Ib," Mary whispered, "I love you, you know that?" She chuckled softly, brushing the flower petals from her face. Sitting up, she muttered, "unfortunately, Garry is still alive- which means he'll have to pay." She ran her thumb along the blade of the knife, leaving a thin red line. Her fingers curled into a fist, shaking slightly.

"But how to get out," she asked herself, "how do I get out? How did they get out n the first place?" Looking around, she squinted in the darkness before noticing a bright green glow. The big blocked letters spelled out the loving word.

**EXIT**

Mary jumped up and ran towards it, her shoes pounding on the floor. She kicked a doll out of the way as it sat lazily in her path. It cried with a squeal as it flew through the air and landed somewhere in the dark corner. Skidding to a stop, she grabbed the handle of the door, turning it with a click. Her blue eye widened as light poured in from the outside, bathing her in its glow.

"Ha! Ha ha ha!" she laughed loudly, nearly screaming, "I'm coming, Garry, I'm coming for you!"


	10. Chapter 10

Lord Death watched alongside Stein, Sid, Marie and Spirit through the glass of the window. He burrowed his brows together in sympathy as he watched Garry pull at his bonds, the leather straps pulling so much until he thought they might snap.

"This is just terrible," Marie commented as Garry cried out in frustration. She twiddled her thumbs nervously as Stein lit a cigarette he had taken out of his pocket. She snatched it from his mouth and threw it on the floor, squashing it with her boot, "and stop smoking- it's a bad habit." Stein rolled his eyes at her. He had dark bags under his eyes from staying up all night to re bandage Garry's face- and let's just say he wasn't very cooperative. Each time he held the scissors high, Garry recoiled and tried to hit one of them. Whenever Marie had come close, or touched him he started screeching like a banshee and plowed through them, trying to break down the door, which Stein had Kid and Tsubaki bolt tightly before dragging him inside. Sid had his arm reattached with a boatload of stitches after he had tried holding Garry down. Instead of complying, Garry had decided to use his teeth after Spirit had dove in and held his legs down. Sid's arm was then bitten clean off.

"Leave me alone!" they heard Garry shout, "Ib! Where's Ib?!" Marie shook her head somberly.

"Do i have to watch this?" she asked, "I really don't like the fact that he thinks I'm this person who killed this little girl he was trying to help." Blood poured from aery's cuts and scars as they ripped open into fresh new wounds.

'Stay," Stein commanded, "we'll need you, okay?" Marie sighed, bust stayed where she was, crossing her arms tightly over her chest.

"How long has this been going on?" Lord Death asked. His usually chipper voice was tired. Stein checked his watch.

"About four hours now," he answered, "the kid should tire himself out sooner or later." Spirit groaned.

"You said that two hours ago!" he whined, "I wanna go see Maka and them, and instead I'm stuck here watching this psychopath scream his head off!"

"I'm sure your daughter is capable of watching hereof, Spirit," Stein said, "and besides, after this scare, I think they want t spend time alone to recuperate a bit." Spirit crossed his arms and huffed, sticking out his lower lip in a pout. Stein smacked him across the face, leaving a stinging red mark. Spirit rubbed his cheek.

"What the heck was that for?!" he asked with bewilderment.

"Grow up, Spirit," Stein barked, "this isn't about father-daughter bonding, this is about helping this kid in front of us. Maka can handle herself, she doesn't need you meddling with her and her friends right now. Got it?" Spirit nodded, shrinking himself until he cowered next to Sid, muttering, Stein is scary, Sid!" Sid patted the man's head.

"Anyway," Stein said, "like I said, he'll tire himself out eventually."

"And what if he doesn't?" Lord Death asked, "what if-"

"Lord Death, Sir," Stein interrupted, "If that happens, we'll just have to wait here."

"And listen to him scream?" Marie asked, "and arch him bleed to death?" Tears were forming in her eyes.

"Yes, Marie, we will do just that." he said. Lord Death shook his head, sighing.

"What's wrong, Headmaster?" Marie asked.

"Is this what happened with Crona?" he asked, "was he this bad?"

"I don't think so, why?" Marie asked.

"Because I'm thinking if this boy is worse off than Crona was, we might need his help," Lord Death explained.

"Crona? But why?" Marie asked, flailing her arms. Garry screamed again and there was a loud rip sounding. Everyone peered through the glass as Garry ripped his arm free of one of the leather bonds. Marie winced as Garry tore at his bond with his free hand. Stein grabbed Spirit and dragged him to his feet, running towards the door.

"Let's go!" Stein commanded. Spirit had to run to keep up.

"What! Now?!" Spirit focused on Garry as they ran into the chamber, "are you nuts?!"

"Duh! Now let's go!" Stein and Spirit dove for the floor as they ran into the room, avoiding a kick from Garry by a few inches. The boy cried out in frustration as his fingers scrabbled for a good hold on the leather. Spirit's body glowed until two curved blades protruded from his back. With a jump, he landed in Steins hand as a weapon of mass destruction- Lord Death's death scythe. With a swing, Stein slashed the blade at Garry, who bent over backwards to avoid getting cut. The air whistled right above his nose as he toppled over from the momentum.

"He's down!" Spirit yelled, "go now!" Stein bought the blade down on Garry, the blade getting stuck in the floor between the boy's legs. Stein tugged at the thick black hand, but it was no use. Spirit was lodged in the floor.

"Crap!" Stein yelled as he ditched Spirit and jumped to the floor, hands outstretched for Garry. Garry slid across the floor, pain shooting up his arm that was tethered to the pole. Stein landed beside him, chin hitting the ground with a crack. Marie watched nervously with Sid and Lord Death. Sid was reaching into his pocket, producing a wad of cash. He flipped his fingers through the money, counting silently, then pulling one from the pile and waving it in the air.

"Twenty bucks Stein wins!" he said, "what about you?" He handed the cash to Marie.

"What?' Marie asked, shoving the money at the zombie, "are you crazy? You don't bet on people!" Sid shrugged, taking the money back.

"What?" he asked, "I'm bored, okay?"

"Please, just watch in case anything happens, okay?" Lord Death chimed in. Spirit was still lodged int he ground as Stein went to punch Garry in the face. Garry dodged his swing and bought his leg up between Stein's legs. Stein sank to his knees and cried out in pain. All three of them cringed.

"That's gotta hurt," Sid commented as Stein spewed a string of curses, each one worse then the one before it. They watched as Spirit returned to human form, flailing his arms and legs wildly as he went to help Stein. Still tied to the pole, Garry delivered a roundhouse kick and sent Spirit flying across the room, crashing into the wall. Sid lifted the money in the air.

"Is it to late to take back my bet?" he asked. Garry had gone back to scratching at the leather around his wrist, finally able to tear through it and free himself.

"Ah, shit!" Stein yelled, grabbing Spirit and heaving him over his shoulder. Spirit had hit his head against the wall when he landed, knocking him unconscious. Garry was advancing on them, his hands curled into fists. As Garry swung, Stein lurched forward, dodging Garry's blow just in time.

"Do you think they need help?" Sid asked, watching as Stein ran around with Spirit's limp body, Garry charging after them like a bull. They watched as Garry jumped, wrapping his arms around Stein's waist, bringing him down with a thud. Stein's glasses flew off his face and clattered on the floor, skittering a few feet away.

"Yup," Marie nodded, "let's go." They ran past Lord Death and pulled open the heavy iron door, throwing themselves into the fight. Marie had her arm transformed into a giant hammer, and she was slamming down wherever Garry was. Unfortunately, Garry was nimble and quick, dodging every one of her attacks while he ran away from Sid, who was plowing his way after Garry, who was running in circles after Stein and Spirit.

"KYAAA!" Stein shrieked, "TAKE HIM! TAKE HIM!" With a grunt, he heaved Spirit's body behind him. Garry cried out as he was hit, falling to the floor. He tried pushing Spirit off him, but to no avail the man's body was a dead weight, anchoring him to the spot. He gasped for breath as Marie and Sid joined Stein, leaning over him.

"That was not a very smart idea, young man," Sid commented, wiping sweat from his forehead. Stein shot him an annoyed look.

"Why…. are you sweating," he panted, "if I was the one who….ran… around carrying…. this tub of lard here?" He gestured to Spirit as Marie and Sid lifted him off of Garry. Stein grabbed Garry's wrists in one of his big hands, dragging the boy towards the door. Garry blew his purple hair out of his face as he tried digging his heels into the floor. Stein jerked him forward, and with his free hand slapped him across the face. The blood on Garry's face was crusting over, drying in his cuts.

"You've caused enough trouble, don't you think?" he asked, his voice sharp and bitter. Garry stopped resisting and followed Stein, who tightened his grip on his wrists as they walked out of the chamber and past Lord Death.

"Where are you going, Stein?" Lord Death called after them. Marie and Sid stood beside the Headmaster, watching Stein and Garry's receding forms as they held onto Spirit.

"The lab!" Stein yelled over his shoulder. Garry stiffened, but continued walking. Stein gritted his teeth as he grabbed at the large bolt in his head, twisting it furiously. To Garry, he said, "You and I are gonna have a little fun." Garry's eyes widened as Stein walked faster. He had to run to keep up.

_The man's glasses are still in the chamber_, Garry thought as they turned a corner. He blinked as he saw other people - _the group who saved me_, he thought as Stein stalked past them, tugging on Garry's wrists hard. A girl with brown pigtails raised a hand.

"Professor Stein!" she called. The man gave a grunt. A boy with white hair and menacing red eyes put a hand on the girl's shoulder.

"I don't think you should talk to him right now, Maka," they boy said, "Stein's got Garry, and he looks pissed." Garry stared at them as he and Stein passed, shooting a curious glare at them. The boy jumped slightly as Maka- what he called her- furrowed her brow, giving him a sympathetic look. A strong wave of chlorine hit his nose as they walked further down the hall. Stein was mumbling to himself.

"Gotta find the scalpel first…incisions there…stitch up that area too….maybe the cleaver? No…."

Stein jerked him forward as they entered a room. Counters lined the wall, covered with papers. Glass test tubes with chemicals of all different colors lines the countertops. Needles lay in open drawers, sharp and ready to sting. In the center of the room, a single bulb hung from the ceiling, an examination table sitting underneath it. Grabbing him under the armpits, Stein carried Garry and threw him onto the table, leaning underneath and pulling up a single black velcro strap.

"What are you-" before he could finish asking, Stein smacked him across the face, opening some of his cuts. Fresh blood dripped down his cheek. Taking the strap in his fingers, he pulled it tightly across Garry's chest, securing it underneath the other end of the table. Garry squirmed.

"Hey! What are you doing?!" he sounded frantic, his eyes wild. Stein ignored him, instead grabbing another strap and stretching it across the boy's legs, tightly securing this as well. Garry kicked, but it was no use- he was stuck, at Stein's will. Garry's face stung with pains he said every word.

"Shut the fuck up!" Stein barked, spitting as he yelled. Garry winced, thinking he might slap him again, but thankfully didn't. His blood was warm against his skin. After tightening the straps under the table, Stein clamped his hands over Garry's wrists, anchoring them to the surface. With a faint purplish glow, Stein removed his hands, and in their place were two thick metal cuffs. He did the same with his neck, leaving slightly red marks. There was no lock on any of them. Garry tried to squeeze his hand through, but the hole was too small, fitting tightly around his bony wrist. Due to the cuff at his neck, he was unable to move it well. He gasped for breath as the metal dug into his trachea.

"I don't think that's wise," Stein said nonchalantly as he went over to one of the counters, hunching over whatever he was doing. Stein carefully held a syringe between his fingers, flicking the long needle. Garry stared at the lightbulb that hung from its chain on the ceiling. Stein's shadow fell over him as the professor approached, syringe in hand. Garry took a quick glance and his eyes widened. The man's eyes were wide, his pupils dilated until it looked as if they were just tiny pencil dots at the end of a sentence.

"Wh-what are you doing….?!" Garry shouted as loud as he could. _If someone hears they might be able to help me!_ he thought as Stein leaned over him. With a shaking hand, he grabbed at Garry's shirt, his fingers digging into the fabric. With a silent laugh, he ripped it, green cloth floating to the needle was poised shakily over his heart, pressed sharply against his skin.

"You've been causing a lot of…. trouble, lately," Sten said, licking his lips.

"Wh-what do you mean?! Why did you pause!?" Garry was frantic, shaking his head side to side as best he could while he tried to pull his hands free. There was a loud bang as Stein pushed the boy's head against the table, holding it there. Sweat dripped down Garry's face. He felt a small sting as Stein pushed the needle into him. Garry could feel some sort of fluid move through his veins, he felt the liquid freeze. His body jerked as he felt something cut into him. Stein released his grip on the syringe, leaving it plunged through his skin.

"There," Stein said, wiping his forehead, "now you won't cause any trouble." Out of the corner of his eye, he looked at where he felt the strong sting of pain. He noticed Stein jump slightly as the door banged open, hitting the wall.

"Professor! Professor!" came a girl's voice- Maka's voice, Garry recalled from hearing it before.

"Hello, Maka, Soul," Stein greeted them with a normal smile, as if he was not sticking needles in people that were chained to examination tables in creepy labs at the moment. He heard Soul gasp.

"Professor! What the hell are you doing?!" he heard Soul shout.

"He won't be causing any more problems," Stein said casually, "that's for sure." Garry had his eyes fixed on his arm, where he felt the most pain. Opening his mouth, he let out a bloodcurdling shriek, making Soul and Maka cover their ears.

Blood flowed freely as it literally poured from his arm. Protruding from his arm was a large shrapnel of metal. It twitched and writhed as it burrowed, big slits blinking and showing pale white eyes. With a loud squeak, it dug into his arm until it disappeared completely.

"Wh-what did you do to me?!" Garry shouted. Stein wiped the needle of the syringe on his lab coat before placing it on the counter-top next to him.

"If you get into any trouble," Stein said, "the shrapnel will come out of your arm and go warn us." Soul's eyes bugged in his head.

"Dude…. that is so disgusting there are no words to explain how disgusting that is," he said. Maka punched his arm.

"Even if it's disgusting, it may prove helpful," Maka said, "what if Mary comes back?" At the name, Garry stiffened on the table, still bonded to it by the metal cuffs. Sweat beaded on his forehead as his eye widened.

"I suggest that you don't mention that name around him," Stein suggested. Garry's face was slick with sweat. Maka pointed to the cuffs.

"Maybe you should undo those?" she asked, "it looks like they're hurting him." Indeed, the cuffs were cutting into his skin, leaving fresh raw gashes. Stein waved it away as he took out a cigarette and lit it.

"Sorry, but he'll have to be secured until he calms down," Stein said as he placed the cigarette between his lips. He glanced at Garry, who was trying to get out of his restraints by squeezing his fists through the cuffs. his chest heaved with effort.

"But he's been through so much lately, do you really think this is necessary to-" Maka protested.

"Maka, I am a teacher at this school. You are a student," Stein explained through gritted teeth, "As a teacher, you kids are my responsibility. And in order to take care of you, which is what we do while you kids are here, we must take certain measures in order to do so."

"But-" Maka started. Soul put a hand on her shoulder, pulling her back a step.

"Maka, don't" Soul warned.

"We must take these measures in order to keep the students safe," Stein said, "do you want to know why we're doing this?"

"Nope," Soul said, "I think we're good, so come on, Maka, let's go-"

"Yes, please tell me, Professor," Maka cut Soul off as he slumped his shoulders, moaning.

"You always need to push, don't you?" Soul muttered as he ran a hand through his hair. He jumped when Garry gave a scream of frustration, flinching when Stein slapped him across the face. Garry's head hit the metal table with a loud bang.

"He's dangerous," Stein said, "you don't know what happened to him during those three months. You know that little girl, Mary? The girl int he painting that tried to kill him?" Maka and Soul nodded. Stein continued, "Well, once he heard Marie's name and once he saw her- they both have blond hair- he went into a rage, thinking Marie was Mary. He attacked us- Sid, Marie and I, that is. Your father as well."

"But you're adults! You're able to protect yourself to the fullest!" Maka suggested to him. Stein's shoulders shook as he laughed.

"Are you kidding me? He knocked your father unconscious-" Soul grimaced at this, since Spirit was more of a liability then a help- "Marie and I were barely able to make it out of that room with our hides!" Soul raised an eyebrow. He had only mentioned four of them, after all.

"And Sid?" Soul asked, "what about him?"

"This one here," Stein tugged at Garry's hair, pressing his neck against hard against the cuff, "bit the zombie's arm clean off. And this was when we had him tied to a post as if he was a wild animal!" He let go of Garry's head and let it hit the table again. A loud bang echoed in the room as Maka glanced at Garry, then at Stein, then back at Garry. Soul took her arm and started walking her tower the door.

"Well, Professor, thanks for your time, but I think we should go now," Soul said throwing a wave behind him, "so see you later!" The door slammed behind them as Soul dragged Maka out of the room, leaving Stein alone with Garry. The last thing they heard were Stein and Garry screaming at each other, each one sounding more inhumane than the other each time they shouted, accompanied by loud bangs and crashes.


	11. Chapter 11

Mary climbed wearily up the stairs, using the railing for support. Her knife was safely tucked away in her pocket, along with a small doll she nabbed from the gallery. Her chest heaved as she climbed. _Why are there so many stairs?!_ she thought as she plopped herself down on the ground once she reached the last step. The doll poked its head out of her pocket and peered up at her, its red eyes blinking.

"What do you want?" she snapped at it, and it cowered, sinking back to the bottom of the cloth hole. She panted, running her hand along the railing, "Took forever…. just to find the dumb school," she commented to herself as she watched the main doors creak open, as if inviting her in. Out came a man dressed all in black, a mask shaped like a skeleton on his face. Taking his hands from behind his back, he revealed large cartoony foam like things attached to his wrists. Mary tossed her head and spit at the ground. The doll peered out of her pocket at the strange man before them.

"Well, howdy-doo!" greeted the man. Mary grimaced.

"Who the hell are you supposed to be?" she asked through gritted teeth. She felt the blade of her knife resting against her leg.

"Well, the Headmaster of the school, of course!" the man gave a little salute as he continued, "Lord Death, at your service! I saw you climbing the stairs on the security cameras, so i figured I'd greet you myself!" Mary scoffed, blowing her hair out of her face.

"Uh-huh," she said blankly, "that's all fine and dandy, but I don't need to be wasting my time with you." Lord Death leaned forward unit he was eye-level with her. _She looks somewhat like that silhouette in the photos, _he thought, _better bring her to Stein just to be safe._

"And who might you be?" he asked, his voice still cheery and bright, "a newly enrolled student? If so, please, let me show you around!"

"Hey! I'm not-!" she protested as he pulled her off her feet and ushered her towards the door, bringing her in. _Wait! If I say I'm a student- it's perfect! _Mary thought, clearing her throat.

"Actually, yes, I am," she said in a sugary tone, "it would be lovely to show me around, sir!" She took the cartoonish hand he held out and followed him in, the doors slamming loudly behind her. Lord Death gestured towards the vast corridor that lay in front of her.

"This, my dear, is the main hall," he explained, "and along the walls, you will find the doors to the classrooms." Mary yelped when he suddenly gripped her hand and dragged her sharply around a corner, "and this is Professor Stein's lab, which I think you'll be visiting very often!" Pushing open the door, he led her in to a laboratory. Counters filled with syringes and papers lined the walls. In the middle of the room was a metal examination table, with velcro straps hanging from the sides. Above the table a dingy light bulb hung from the ceiling, dimly lit and flickering. Lord Death knocked on the door with his free hand to get someone's attention, although Mary could see no one in the lab with them. A trail of smoke drifted throughout the air as a man suddenly walked out of the darkness of the corners, a cigarette hanging from his lips.

"This my dear," Lord Death said, "is our Professor Stein. He's head of the Science Department here at the Academy." Lord Death gave Stein a stern glare as if saying, "I think this is the girl who's been tormenting Garry." Stein nodded as if he understood.

"So," Stein plucked the cigarette from his mouth and squished it under his boot as he pulled a new one from his pocket, "what's your name?" Mary crossed her arms and huffed.

"Why do I have to tell you?" she asked haughtily. Stein chuckled to himself, spitting out his cigarette and crushing it under the toe of his boot.

"Because I think it would be unwise not to," Stein answered, an evil glint in his eye. Mary arched an eyebrow, unsure of what to make of him. His skin was littered with railroad tracks of scars, his eyes looking bloodshot and weary. A huge bolt stuck out of his head, which he grabbed and cranked viciously before sighing, "Ah, much better. Now-"

"Where's Garry?" Mary asked, cutting right to the chase. Stein eyed her carefully as he noticed Lord Death slip out the door. _I guess I'll have to deal with her myself then, huh?_ he thought, _Oh well_.

"So, you know he's here?" Stein asked nonchalantly, "then I guess there's no point in stalling then." Walking backwards slowly, he reached for a drawer in one of the desks. The wood scratched his fingers as he felt around for it, then jumped slightly as he prodded the needle with his finger. Grabbing it, he concealed it in his large fist, stowing it safely away in his pocket. Mary jutted her chin at his hand, which twitched slightly, "Why so jumpy, old man?" Stein smirked as she continued, "Of course, the other one seemed a lot more snippy."

"Soul Eater Evans is not an old man," Stein explained, calmly taking a step towards Mary, who stood as still as a statue. The dim bulb buzzed as the yellow-orange light flickered. The velcro straps hanging off the sides of the examination table swayed side to side idly.

"Who?" Mary asked, cocking her head to the side like a curious newborn puppy. _Is he talking about that other guy with the white hair?_ she thought, then quickly realized it was, in fact, him and said, "Oh, him. No, I still think he's old. He has white hair after all."

"You know, not all old men have white hair- kids can prematurely age too," Stein explained as he took a few more steps towards her, slipping his beefy hand into his pocket. Mary eyed him carefully.

"What is that in your pocket?" she asked, reaching into her own, feeling around until she found the handle to her knife.

"What's in yours?" Stein countered, smiling to himself. The stitches on his face seemed to stretch until they would come undone. With his free hand, he reached up as his head jerked to the side. Grabbing the huge bolt protruding from his head, he twisted it. Sparks flew from the metal as he turned it, sighing with relief when he let go, letting his hand drop to his side.

"How come you have a bolt in your head?" Mary asked. _Maybe if I stall him enough, i can stab him, since he keeps walking over here_, she thought as he took a few more steps, leaving a foot of space between them. Stein sighed, pushing his glasses up his nose.

"That's none of your concern," he answered nonchalantly, alms bored, "and besides, it's a long story. I don't think it would interest you very much. But if it's okay, may i ask a question?" Mary shrugged, her fingers culling around the handle of her knife. Stein glared at her , activating his ability to see souls. He used this technique often to size up his enemies- he knew that all the students had souls, and Lord Death's was so big it surrounded the city. _I wonder how big hers is?_ he thought squinting.

"Sure, but I don't expect you's be….interested," she said, imitating his choice of words, "and why are you squinting like that, huh? Need a new prescription?" A smile spread across her face, wide and somewhat menacing. Stein del a drop of sweat slide down his temple. He ignored it, trying his best to see her soul- _the only problem is that there is nothing,_ he thought as he answered, "Well, my eyes aren't what they used to be, you know?" Mary rolled her eyes as he gave a chuckle, then asked, "So, how'd you escape?"

"What do you mean?" she scoffed, "I found the exit, duh."

"No, I mean from your frame," Stein pressed. He smirked when her eyes widened with surprised. Her shoulders trembled slightly as she tried to breathe deeply, calm herself down.

"H-how do you know about that?" she stuttered, "it isn't possible, they didn't know-"

"It's called evidence, my dear," Stein interrupted, "and we use it to track down suspects. Photos as well. And they just so happened to lead us to you." Mary wiped at her forehead furiously s she felt sweat begin to drip on her face. When she took her hand away, they were wet, glistening with what looked like, cloudy water…..

"What….?" she asked herself, "what is this?" She gripped the knife tightly, withdrawing it from her pocket. Stein raised an eyebrow, leaning over to peer closer at her hand, wet with her own paint.

"It seems your paint is wet, no?" he asked, "and nice weapon you have there, want to see mine?" Before Mary could say anything, throw her hands up to protect herself, Stein whipped out the syringe and had the needle pressed against her neck, the tip pricking the skin of her neck.

"Wh-what are you doing?!" she exclaimed, raising the knife, then stopping- Stein smacked her hand, causing her to drop it. Paint the color of her porcelain skin dripped from her fingers, some of it stained on the handle of her weapon. The blade clattered on the ground as it landed.

"You've caused a lot of problems here, you know that?" Stein said, whispering in her ear. His breath was hot against her skin, making it tingle.

"And?" Mary asked, annoyed, "what's it to you?" Her voice cracked slightly at the end of that question.

"As a teacher, it's my job to protect anyone who comes inside these doors," Stein said. Mary laughed, her voice booming in the empty air.

"Then aren't you going against your rules?" she asked, challenging him.

"See, that's the thing," Stein answered, his voice almost a growl, "it's my job to protect them from harm. The students who went to the gallery- they were injured. Tsubaki need to get stitches, and the Headmaster's son was out cold for maybe a day or two."

"So? I don't care," Mary gritted her teeth, hissing like a snake.

"The best was that boy-" Stein laughed low, deep.

"Your breath stinks," Mary commented, "do you even bother brushing your teeth?" Stein ignored her comment, continuing, "- he came in, his eyes wild with panic, his clothes torn and dirty. Guess what happened to him?" _He knows it was me_, Mary thought, _crap! Gotta get out of his grasp- but what if he kills me before I can move? Not unless I drip to death…._

When Mary was silent, he shook her violently, her head looking as if it was about to snap off her neck. Wet paint dripped from her body onto the floor, the examination table, Stein's face and clothes.

"He had cuts covering every inch of his skin, including around his eyes!" Stein rises his voice, pushing Mary to the ground. She landed with a crash, feeling the smooth blade elf her knife chaff her skin as she landed on it. She felt tears sting the corners of her eyes as Stein approached, towering over her. An evil glint was in his eyes as he bent over her, his glasses sliding down the bridge of his nose.

"That was because of you!" he yelled in her face, spit flying from his mouth, "and you know what else?!" Mary wiped her face cautiously. He still had his hand in his pocket- why? _What's he gonna do?!_ Mary panicked, letting the sweat fall freely, not hiding the fear in her eyes, wide and panicked. Stein continued, his voice getting suddenly low, almost a whisper, "When I went to examine on him, I opened his mouth- guess what was there?" He waited for her to answer. Mary's blue eyes were panicky, her head shaking side to side as she mumbled a weak, "No….no…." An insane smile slowly spread across his face, showing all his teeth, gleaming and white.

"Oh yes," he answered, talking as one who might talk to a child, "cuts and scrapes everywhere. His gums, the insides of his cheeks. Some went as far as down his throat. But the best was that his tongue…" he stopped when he saw tears stream down her cheeks, her body shaking with fright at the insane man who was holding her captive, who was holding a weapon at her throat, one hand in his pocket, concealing what else he might use to torture her.

"…His tongue," he repeated, "was torn apart." Mary felt him race her neck with the needle, the point pressing her skin, "ripped apart as if he was attacked by a wild animal, you couldn't even tell it was a tongue, you destroyed it so bad. Bandaged so many times, he was, we ran out of supplies." He opened his mouth to say something, but his head whipped around to look at the door when there was a loud bang.

"Stein!" barked Sid, "you in there?" Stein growled at the door, Mary shaking under him.

"Yo, Stein!" came Spirit's voice as well, "Lord Death-sama needs us! Open up!" Their voices were muffled by the wooden barrier.

"Go away!" Stein growled, sounding more animal than human, "I'm busy!"

"With what?" Spirit asked, "Listen, I'm gonna com in with Sid, okay?" The doorknob creaked as it was turned, then a click.

"Suit yourself, but you won't like what you're gonna see," Stein warned, turning back to Mary. He pressed the needle harder against her skin as the door creaked open and Spirit entered with Sid, crying out with horror. There was a crash as Spirit collapsed against Sid, who fell to the floor. Mary's lower lip quivered as she let out a weak cry for help.

"No one is going to help you!" Stein cried with a laugh, "don't you realize?! You don't have anyone to save you! You never did!"

"The artist-" Mary protested.

"The artist is dead!" Stein cut her off, "face it! You don't have anyone because you never wanted anyone until Ib came along! So you killed her in order for her to stay! But there's difference- she didn't truly stay in the gallery! Because she was a human! You were a painting! A mere figment, idea of some psychotic murderer!"

"You-you-" Mary stuttered.

"I what? You know I'm right- no one can save you- no one ever wanted to save you!" Stein shouted. Mary wailed with frustration.

Stein didn't notice Sid getting into a sitting position, pushing Spirit off him. He watched with horror, the doctor torture the little girl- if that was what she really was. Stein's body shook with laughter, an insane smile spread across his face.

"And you know it!" Stein continued to yell. His voice was hoarse and raspy- he was screaming now, nearly screeching at the top of his lungs, "Your existence means nothing! You are nothing!" Mary's skin- her paint, really- was dripping rapidly, pooling on the ground. His screaming drowned out footsteps that were coming closer. Sid could hear Marie shouting at students to stay in their classrooms, that "Soul, Maka do not follow me, whatever you do! I implore you to listen to directions just this once!" Her shoes squeaked as she slid to a stop in the doorframe and screamed just as Stein plunged the needle into Mary's neck, emptying the canister completely. Two more pairs of feet sounded and Maka and Soul appeared next to her, trying to push past her to get in.

"What's going on, what's happening?" Soul asked frantically. Marie grabbed them, holding them behind her as Mary's body shook violently, like one who was possessed b demons. Paint began to flood, leaving rivers on the floor. Stein's shoulders heaved along with his chest as he panted, out of breath. Where Mary was, there was nothing but a puddle of paint. The syringe fell from Stein's fist, clanging against the floor. Maka and Soul succeeded in pushing past Marie and gasped, surveying the scene.

"Wh-what happened…..?" Maka asked, trailing off.

"Yeah, where's Mary?" Soul asked dubiously, shoving his hands in his pockets. Stein snapped his head in their direction, making the teenagers jump. _He looks scary! _Soul thought as the teacher pushed his glasses ion their proper place.

"Mary….." he panted with a mad grin, "won't be coming back, I'm afraid."


End file.
